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Dobsch  utz,  Ernst  von 
1934. 

Christian  life  in  the 
primitive  church 


1870- 


THEOLOGICAL    TRANSLATION    LIBRARY 


VOL.    XVIII. 

DOBSCHUTZ'S   CHRISTIAN   LIFE   IN   THE 
PRIMITIVE   CHURCH 


CHRISTIAN    LIFE 


IN    THE 


PRIMITIVE    CHURCH 


BY 

ERNST   VON    DOBSCHUTZ,   D.D. 

ORDINARY   PROFESSOR   OF   NEW   TESTAMENT   THEOLOGY   IN   THE   UNIVERSITY 
OF    STRASSBURG 


TRANSLATED    BY 

The   Rev.    GEORGE    BREMNER,    B.D. 

AND   EDITED   BY 

The   Rev.    W.    D.    MORRISON,    LL.D. 


NEW    YORK  :      G.    P.    PUTNAM  S     SONS 

LONDON  :     WILLIAMS    AND    NORGATE 

1904 


Preface  to   the   German    Edition 


For  a  long  time  theologians  were  specially  attracted 
by  the  great  thoughts  which  are  connected  with  the 
objective  content  of  Christian  truth.  Much  earnest 
labour  was  expended  upon  dogma  in  the  way  both 
of  working  it  out  speculatively  and  investigating  it 
historically.  N^'^ithin  recent  years,  however,  more 
attention  has  come  to  be  paid  to  the  subjective 
element  in  religion,  viz.,  personal  Christianity,  religious 
psychology,  and  the  various  forms  which  religion 
assuines  in  the  individual,  in  different  ages  or  classes, 
and  in  particular  peoples  and  periods.  The  need  for 
an  account  of  popular  religious  thought  and  feeling 
{Volkskiuide)  has  been  almost  generally  recognized. 
As  a  division  of  practical  theology,  it  is  concerned  in 
the  first  instance  with  the  present,  but  it  will  certainly 
welcome  the  assistance  of  history.  The  present  study 
is  an  attempt  to  ti-ansfer  the  method  to  primitive 
Christianity. 

To  this  end  we  choose  the  domain  where,  in  our 
opinion,  Christianity  can  adduce  the  best  evidence  of 
power — the  doipain  of  mnra.ls.  At  the  present  time 
theology  shows  a  strong  disposition  to  look  for  the 
special  power  of  Christianity  in  a  quite  different 
quarter.  There  is  a  growing  mysticism  which  seeks 
its    essence    in    enthusiasm   and    in   ecstatic  spiritual 


vi       PREFACE   TO   THE   GERMAN   EDITION 

phenomena,  known  to  our  fathers  as  union  with  God 
and  to  us  moderns  as  demonism  {Sal^Mv,  Sai^onov). 
We  are  indebted  to  this  current  of  thought  for  the 
light  which  it  has  thrown  upon  prophetism  and  for 
a  far  richer  understanding  of  primitive  Christianity. 
The  operations  of  the  Spirit  and  of  spirits 
undoubtedly  form  an  important  chapter  in  the 
history  of  rehgion.  But  not  everything  in  the 
history  of  Christianity  turned  upon  these  phenomena, 
nor  do  they  determine  the  verdict  to  be  passed  on 
primitive  Christianity.  On  the  contrary,  they  may 
easily  lead  to  an  unjust  estimate  of  history.  They 
transform  the  restriction  of  an  overflowing  enthusi- 
asm by  the  fixed  forms  of  ecclesiastical  development 
into  the  "  fall"  of  primitive  Christianity. 

If  we  start  not  from  general  conceptions  of  religion, 
but  from  the  thought  that  Christianity  is  the  religion 
in  which  everything  is  defined  by  the  historical  person 
of  Jesus  Christ,  it  is  clear  that  at  once  the  ideal  of 
Christianity  and  the  standard  by  which  its  historical 
forms  are  to  be  judged  must  be  sought  not  in  ecstatic 
outbursts  of  feeling  but  in  the  doing  of  God's  will. 
To  begin  with  the  moral  proofs  of  Christianity,  is  an 
old  and  approved  apologetic  method.  Gregory  of 
Nazianzus  says,  7rpa^i9  e7r//3acr«?  Qecopiag ;  and  in  an  early 
Christian  preacher  we  find  "  neither  life  without 
knowledge,  nor  sure  knowledge  without  real  life," 
JEp.  ad  Diognetum,  xii.  4. 

That  being  so,  we  are  not  concerned  so  much  with 
the  ethical  theories  set  up  by  Christianity  from  time 
to  time  as  with  the  actual  effects  which  the  impulse 
proceeding  from  the  Gospel  produced.  We  must  ask 
how  far  it  was  possible  to  realize  the  ideal  in  practice. 


PREFACE   TO   THE    GERMAN    EDITION      vii 

How  did  tilings  look  in  the  early  Christian  com- 
munities {  \\"hat  was  their  actual  moral  condition  ? 
AVhat  was  the  individual's  contribution  to  the  moral 
life  of  the  community  ?  These  questions  indicate 
the  problem  with  which  we  have  to  deal. 

Strangely  enough,  it  is  a  problem  which  has  been 
dealt  with  hardly  at  all,  Ritschl's  suggestion  that  more 
attention  should  be  devoted  to  moral  conditions  in 
the  history  of  the  Christian  Church  {Litt.  Central- 
blatt,  1856,  454  f )  has  only  been  very  occasionally 
given  effect  to  in  the  treatment  of  the  apostolic  age. 
It  has  been  kept  in  view  most  by  Lechler  perhaps, 
and  more  recently  by  Weizsacker,  who  has  followed 
up  the  beginnings  of  Christian  morals  with  charac- 
teristic thoroughness.  As  distinguished  from  the 
idealizing  method  of  the  earlier  period,  it  has  now 
become  easy  to  fall  into  the  mistake  of  painting  too 
black  a  picture.  From  all  sorts  of  statements  gleaned 
in  the  darkest  corners  and  dipped  in  the  deepest  hues, 
Hausrath  drew  a  picture  so  gloomy  that  one  is  com- 
pelled to  wonder  where  Christianity  ever  found  the 
power  to  conquer  the  ancient  world.  Harnack 
{Theol.  Litt.  Zeifung,  1884)  replied  by  showing  the 
proper  standpoint  for  judging  its  moral  standing,  but 
the  task  itself  has  not  yet  been  accomplished. 
Ulhorn's  great  work  contains  an  exhaustive  treatment 
of  the  main  point.  Christian  charity  ;  Zahn,  with  his 
well-known  erudition,  has  considered  other  single 
questions  in  various  lectures  ;  quite  lately  some  of  the 
preliminary  problems,  the  spread  of  Christianity,  the 
social  composition  of  the  Christian  communities,  the 
Christian  attitude  towards  national  life,  and  the 
position     of    women     have     been     dealt     with    by 


viii     PREFACE   TO   THE   GERMAN   EDITION 

Wohlenberg.  I  do  not  include  works  on  moral 
doctrine  and  its  history.  Only  one  comprehensive 
treatment  of  our  subject  is  known  to  me.  It  is  to 
be  found  in  Kahler's  thoughtful  lecture  on  "  die 
richtige  Beurteilung  der  apostolischen  Gemeinden 
nach  dem  Neuen  Testamente,"  which  was  called 
forth  at  the  Sachsische  Missions- Konferenz  in  Halle, 
1894,  by  Missiondirektor  Buchner's  suggestive  lecture 
on  "  die  gerechte  Wlirdigung  der  (modernen)  heiden- 
christlichen  Gemeinden."  Both  works  bear  some 
trace  of  their  occasional  character.  For  an  exhaus- 
tive treatment  more  detail  is  necessary. 

For  our  purpose  single  pictures  are  requisite. 
Their  value  for  us  will  depend  on  their  individual 
character.  We  purposely  place  the  two  compositions 
whose  richer  material  calls  for  most  attention,  at  the 
beginning  and  the  end.  As  certainly  as  primitive 
Christianity  is  to  be  distinguished  as  a  closed  system 
from  the  Christian  ecclesiasticism  of  the  later  period, 
so  certainly  within  itself  it  is  extraordinarily  multi- 
form. What  a  diiFerence  there  is  between  the 
Christian  life  on  Jewish  and  on  Greek  soil,  where  the 
synagogue  had  prepared  the  way  or  where  the 
Gospel  entered  the  heathen  world  immediately,  in  the 
metropolis  or  in  an  outlying  Syrian  village.  What 
a  difference  it  makes  whether  the  first  witnesses  of 
the  life  of  Jesus,  with  their  decisive  authority, 
missionaries  with  the  power  of  a  Paul,  stood  by  the 
Churches  to  guide  them,  or  whether  these  were 
dependent  on  themselves  and  the  men  of  the  second 
generation.  Not  to  specialize  means  to  paint  an 
unfaithful  picture.  Even  supplementary  conclusions 
drawn   from   facts   in    one    quarter    and    applied    to 


PREFACE   TO   THE    GERMAN   EDITION       ix 

another   are   hazardous,    and    to    be    employed   only 
Y  where  inadequate  sources  demand  some  imaginative 
development.       A     comparison     of    the     individual 
pictures  will  supply  the  material  for  a  final  verdict. 

AVhen  we  speak  of  Christian  morality  we  frequently 
mean  a  definite  theological  and  ethical  system,  or  at 
least  a  complex  of  moral  views  which  are  familiar  to 
us,  and  which  our  own  settled  convictions  take  for 
granted  to  be  Christian.  But  history  reveals  very 
diverse  views  on  this  point.  The  actual  morality  of 
a  people  and  a  period  depends  on  a  variety  of  circum- 
stances. It  is  affected  by  the  geographical  nature  of 
the  country,  climatic  and  similar  considerations,  the 
racial  character  of  the  people,  with  its  past  history 
and  present  political  condition  ;  in  a  word,  by  all  that 
comes  under  civilization  and  history,  and  by  its  religion. 
The  main  point  for  us  is  to  decide  what  value  attaches 
to  this  last  factor. 

To  that  end  regard  must  be  had  to  the  moral 
standing  of  the  non- Christian  world  of  the  age. 
From  it  only  can  we  learn  why  Christianity  had  such 
a  hard  fight  to  establish  its  fundamental  moral 
thoughts.  It  alone  makes  clear  to  us  that  the 
morality  of  early  Christianity,  notwithstanding  its 
imperfections,  was  unmistakably  higher  than  all  that 
Greek  civilization  could  achieve.  One  who  sets  aside 
the  history  of  the  times  deprives  himself  of  the  best 
aid  to  a  vivid  picture  and  a  clearly-grounded  verdict. 

Our  time-limits  hardly  require  any  justification. 
Primitive  Christianity  is  a  historical  entity  and  in- 
cludes the  first  century  of  development  from  the  death 
of  Jesus  up  to  the  time  of  Hadrian  (30-130).  It  was 
the  time  when  the  Bar  Cochba  war  actually  made  an 


X        PREFACE   TO   THE   GERMAN    EDITION 

end  of  the  national  Judaism  of  Palestine  and  deprived 
Jewish  Christianity  of  any  historical  importance,  when 
Aelia  Capitolina  came  to  stand  on  the  holy  place  of 
Jerusalem,  and  a  Gentile  Church  settled  there  ;  the 
time  when  Christianity  began  to  covenant  with  Gra?co- 
Roman  civilization  Mdth  the  view  of  establishing 
itself  as  the  Church  in  the  world,  when  speculative 
minds  began  to  build  bold  systems  out  of  it  and 
apologists  attempted  to  justify  it  to  the  civilized 
world  as  the  best  practical  philosophy;  the  time,  finally, 
when  with  the  last  who  had  themselves  seen  the 
Lord  (Quadratus  apud  Eusebius,  Hist.  Eccles.,  IV. 
iii.  2),  the  primitive  Christian  enthusiasm  sank  into 
the  grave  and  men  had  the  consciousness  of  belonging 
not  to  the  second  only  but  to  the  third  and  the  fourth 
generations. 

It  follows  from  the  historical  nature  of  our  task 
that  all  primitive  Christian  compositions  belonging  to 
this  period  are  to  be  employed  as  sources,  without 
any  distinction  between  canonical  and  extra-canonical. 
In  the  same  way  we  must  proceed  as  chronologically 
as  possible.  Notwithstanding  this,  however,  the 
Pauline  are  treated  before  the  Jewish-Christian 
Churches.  This  is  a  procedure  which  is  justified  by 
the  sources.  It  brings  out  the  special  character  of 
each  community  better,  and  enables  us  to  adopt  a 
more  material  order  towards  the  close. 

It  is  only  a  section  of  the  history  of  primitive 
Christianity  with  which  we  deal.  The  border-line 
between  it  and  other  parts  is  not  always  easy  to  draw. 
Constitution,  worship,  the  whole  life  of  the  community 
and  its  usages,  are  forms  in  which  the  moral  spirit  of 
Christianity  finds  expression.      But  it  is  only  from 


PREFACE   TO   THE    GERMAN   EDITION       xi 

this  point  of  view  and  not  on  their  technical  side  (if  I 
may  say  so)  that  these  questions  can  here  be  handled. 
I  must  therefore  be  excused  for  only  touching  upon 
many  an  interesting  problem  and  for  making  state- 
ments whose  proof  in  detail  I  am  here  compelled  to 
deny  myself. 

This  difficulty  will  be  most  felt  in  questions  of 
literary  history.  I  have  been  compelled  to  introduce 
them ;  for  only  so  could  the  sources  be  systematically 
valued.  On  the  other  hand  it  would  have  disordered 
my  work,  if  1  had  yielded  to  the  temptation  to  include 
a  small  introduction  to  the  New  Testament.  The 
discussion  of  single  problems  which  I  handle  in  a 
way  special  to  myself  may  be  possible  elsewhere. 

I  trust  that  the  few  supplementary  notes,  especially 
the  last,  will  be  found  useful,  and  the  detailed  indexes 
helpful  in  using  the  book. 

My  study  has  a  larger  aim  than  the  knowledge  of 
primitive  Christianity.  However  important  a  general 
investigation  of  this  ground-laying  and  initial  period 
is,  it  only  acquires  full  significance  when  it  is  placed 
in  relation  to  the  present.  Among  religious  questions 
in  our  eminently  practical  time,  perhaps  the  most 
outstanding  one  is  the  extent  to  which  Christianity 
demonstrates  itself  as  a  moral  power  in  our  people's 
life.  It  is  a  question  that  concerns  statesmen  as  well 
as  theologians.  In  his  Kirchengeschichte  Deuisch- 
lands,  A.  Hauck  has  shown  the  valuable  contribution 
which  the  historian  can  make  to  its  solution. 
Historical  study  clears  the  vision  for  our  own  time. 
Much  that  we  do  not  understand  in  it,  and  do  not 
even  detect,  can  be  obser\'ed  when  we  take  some 
object  of  consideration  more  remote  from  us.     We 


xii      PREFACE   TO   THE   GERMAN   EDITION 

live  often  in  an  ideal  world,  and  hardly  notice  how 
little  the  world  around  us  corresponds  to  it.  But 
when  we  have  once  clearly  recognized  the  contrast 
between  ideal  and  real  in  the  past,  it  will  soon  meet 
us  in  the  present,  and  we  shall  learn  what  steps  to 
take  to  remove  it.  Kiihler  concluded  his  lecture  with 
a  warm  appeal  to  fructify  the  study  of  the  New 
Testament  through  the  reports  of  present-day 
missionary  enterprize.  I  may  surely  say  conversely 
that  every  clergyman,  in  order  aright  to  estimate 
the  circumstances  of  the  flock  entrusted  to  his  care, 
ought  to  have  fashioned  for  himself  a  clear  picture 
of  conditions  in  the  early  Christian  communities. 
These  were  by  no  means  ideal.  For  that  very  reason 
they  can  be  typical. 


Preface  to  the   English   Edition 


"  What  is  Christianity  ? "  is  the  great  question  in 
the  theology  of  the  present  day.  Harnack  tells  us 
that  the  answer  can  be  found  only  by  historical 
research.  Thus  we  come  to  ask  what  the  beginnings 
of  our  religion  were.  What  was  the  primitive 
Christianity  ? 

It  is  with  this  problem  that  the  present  book  deals. 
It  gives  a  picture  of  early  Christian  life  on  its  moral 
side.  Possibly  some  of  my  readers  may  suppose 
that  the  question  is  already  answered.  "  Christianity," 
they  say,  "  is  morality,  moral  renovation  both  of  the 
individual  and  of  society."  Such  a  view,  however, 
is  far  from  being  the  author's  conception.  He  lays 
great  stress  on  this  moral  transformation.  To  his 
mind  it  constitutes  the  most  effective  proof  of  the 
truth  of  Christianity.  But  it  is  only  a  proof,  a| 
demonstration  of  Christianity,  and  not  its  essence. 

Christianity  is  salvation  by  faith,  faith  in  God 
through  Jesus  Christ,  His  only  begotten  Son.  Apart 
from  revelation  such  a  faith  cannot  arise  in  mankind, 
nor  can  it  be  maintained  in  sinners  without  the 
assurance  of  forgiveness.  It  is  this  faith  which  gives 
life  and  happiness.  Without  fruits,  however,  it 
would  be  false.  St  James  (ii.  20)  says  that  "faith 
without  works  is  dead."     Our  Lord  makes  faith  the 


xiv     PREFACE   TO   THE   ENGLISH   EDITION 

first  requisite  of  all,^  but  He  too  seeks  for  its  fruits.^ 
When  He  says,  "  Not  every  one  that  saith  unto  me, 
Lord,  Lord,  shall  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven  ; 
but  he  that  doeth  the  will  of  my  Father  which  is  in 
heaven"  (Matt.  vii.  21),  He  emphasizes  the  duty  of 
moral  activity  or  practical  Christianity.  But  He 
does  not  deny  the  necessity  of  calling  Him  Lord,  that 
is,  of  having  a  religious  attitude  towards  Himself. 
In  speaking  of  "the  will  of  my  Father  which  is  in 
heaven,"  He  joins  morality  to  religion,  i.e.  to  faith  in 
God  and  obedience  to  Him. 

Much,  however,  depends  upon  the  time  and  the 
nation.  Every  age  has  its  own  conception  of  the 
Gospel,  and  as  human  thought  is  always  imperfect, 
there  must  always  be  one  -  sidedness  to  correct. 
Sometimes  the  idea  of  the  Church  is  overvalued  and 
the  rights  of  the  individual  must  be  asserted.  At 
other  times  individualism  is  excessive  and  requires 
to  be  balanced  by  bringing  forward  the  thought  of 
coinmunity.  In  the  same  way  faith  and  morality 
are  the  two  parts  of  religion.  The  one  cannot  exist 
without  the  other.  But  the  one  or  the  other  is 
always  gaining  a  dangerous  supremacy. 

It  has  been  said  that  we  are  inclined  to  fall  into  a 
mere  morality,  and  the  reproach  is  made  in  especial 
against  the  Ritschlian  school.  What  the  author  feels 
at  present  is  the  very  opposite  danger.  Among  the 
younger  German  theologians  there  is  a  great  inclina- 

1  Mark  i.  \5,  xi.  22,  iv.  40;  v.  86,  ix.  22;  v.  34,  x.  52; 
Matt.  xvii.  20;  Luke  xvii.  6;  Matt.  viii.  10;  Luke  vii.  9; 
Luke  vii.  50,  xvii.  19- 

2  Matt.  vii.  10  fF.,  xii.  33;  Luke  vi.  43  fF.  ;  Mark  iv.  7  f., 
28  f.,  xii.  2  ;  Luke  xiii.  6  fF.  ;  Mark  xi.  13  f. 


PREFACE   TO   THE    ENGLISH   EDITION     xv 

tion  towards  mysticism.  There  is  one  school  which 
makes  Jesus  Himself  an  ecstatic  who  lived  in  a  Utopia 
of  eschatological  ideas.  Others,  who  do  not  go  so  far, 
describe  His  apostles  as  men  quite  incapable  of  the 
sublime  spirit  of  the  Gospel,  who  fell  back  to  the  level 
of  the  surrounding  religious  world.  No  doubt  there 
is  some  truth  in  these  assertions,  but  they  need  to  be 
counterbalanced  by  urging  all  that  is  lasting  in  Christ's 
teaching  and  by  connecting  His  disciples  with 
Himself  and  separating  them  from  the  world  around 
them.  Close  examination  will  show  this  to  be  the 
predominant  feature  of  His  and  their  teaching,  and 
not  the  fact  that  they  took  their  stand  on  the  inferior 
level  of  the  religions  of  the  time. 

Considerations  like  these  would  seem  to  lead  to  a 
careful  study  of  the  ethics  of  Jesus  and  the  Apostles. 
Notwithstanding  many  good  works  already  dealing 
with  the  subject,  it  would  be  a  task  that  would 
repay  trouble.  But  the  present  writer  has  his  reasons 
for  going  a  step  further.  What  he  endeavours  to 
I  investigate  is  not  tlie  ethical  teaching  of  primitive 
Christianity,  but  its  real  morals.  At  the  same  time, 
however,  he  wishes  to  express  his  very  distinct  con- 
viction that  historical  progress  cannot  be  explained  by 
forces  originating  in  a  collective  way,  but  by  eminent 
leaders  or  "  heroes "  as  Carlyle  calls  them.  The 
astonishing  success  of  the  Gospel  during  the  first 
century  is  the  work  of  St  Paul  and  his  fellow-labourers, 
not  of  the  mass  of  Christian  converts  whom  they 
brought  together  by  their  preaching.  The  character 
of  the  single  communities  owes  more  to  the  founder 
than  to  the  former  situation  of  the  individual  members. 
Nevertheless    the     question    whether    Christianity 


xvi     PREFACE   TO   THE   ENGLISH   EDITION 

proved  itself  a  moral  force  will  not  be  answered  by 
the  study  of  Pauline  ethics  alone.  We  must 
also  try  to  discover  the  standard  of  morals  in  the 
communities  which  St  Paul  founded.  The  task  is 
by  no  means  easy.  In  order  to  obtain  a  right 
impression  of  what  the  Pauline  communities  really 
were,  we  must  carefully  examine  the  Apostle's  own 
opinion  of  them. 

There  is  some  difference  too  in  national  conceptions 
of  the  Gospel.  In  Germany  the  evolution  of  religious 
thought  and  feeling  has  always  been  highly  theological, 
so  that  even  historical  investigation  has  been  largely 
guided  by  dogmatic  views.  In  England,  where  dogma 
is  balanced  by  liturgical  and  practical  interests,  its 
influence  would  not  seem  to  be  so  great.  English 
dissent  represents  in  itself  the  greatest  variety  of 
religious  opinions.  The  most  remarkable  feature  of 
modern  development  is  that  all  differences  of  dogma 
and  creed  disappear  before  the  great  practical  tasks 
of  to-day.  These  tasks  all  endeavour  to  accomplish. 
This  is  just  what  we  observe  in  primitive  Christianity, 
It  is  the  true  spirit  of  Christian  life. 

This  being  so,  I  hope  that  my  book  will  find  a 
good  reception  in  its  new  English  dress,  as  it  has 
already  found  a  hearty  welcome  in  England  in  its 
German  form.  May  it  do  its  work  not  only  by 
diffusing  exact  knowledge  of  old  Christian  manners 
and  morals,  but  also  by  disseminating  the  spirit  of 
primitive  Christianity,  the  earnest,  strong  and  vic- 
torious spirit  of  faithful  religious  and  moral  activity. 

E.  VON  DOBSCHUTZ. 

Jena,  Whitsuntide  1904. 


Table  of  Contents 


INTRODUCTION.     THE  PROBLEM  AND  THE  SOURCES. 

PAGES 

Christian  life  according  to  the  Apology  of  Aristides, 
XXV.  The  counter-picture  in  Hermas,  xxvii. 
The  problem,  xxviii.  The  sources,  xxix.  Their 
inadequacy,  xxix.  The  vai-ious  groups  of  litera- 
ture, xxix.  Limits  of  the  evidence,  xxxiii.  Want 
of  statistics,  xxxiv.  Trustworthiness,  xxxiv. 
Theory  and  fact,  xxxvi.  The  significance  of 
Jesus'  moral  thoughts,  xxxviii     .  .  .  xxv-xxxix 


BOOK  I.  THE  PAULINE  CHURCHES. 

Chapter  I.  The  Education  of  the  Churches. 

Moral  training  by  the  Apostle,  L  The  ethical 
element  of  his  preaching,  1.  Enumerations  of 
vices,  2,  Table  of  domestic  duties  (Col.  iii.  18- 
iv.  2),  4.  Detailed  moral  teaching  (Rom.  xii.- 
xiv.),  5.     Motives,  8.      Pedagogy,  9     .  .  •  1-10 

Chapter  II.  The  Church  of  Corinth. 

The  town,  II.  Paul's  labours,  13.  The  com- 
munity, 13.  The  devotional  life,  l6.  Participa- 
tion by  all,  l6.  Disorders,  17.  False  valuation 
of  the  Spirit's  operations,  18.     Baptism  and  the 

Lord's  Supper,  19 11-22 

xvii 


xviii  TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 

Chapter   III.  The  Church  of  Corinth  {continued). 

PAGES 

Christian  and  non-Christian,  23.  Meat  offered  to 
idols,  26.  Lawsuits,  29.  Mixed  marriages,  30. 
The  question  of  slavery,  33.  The  position  of 
women,  36.  Marriage  and  celibacy,  40.  The  j]"?) 
seventh  commandment,  43.  The  case  of  incest, 
44.  Paul's  intervention,  45.  Refusal  of  the 
Church,  47.  The  culprit's  penitence,  48.  The 
Church's  attitude  criticised,  49-  The  Apostle's 
preaching  lacking  on  the  moral  side,  51.  Further 
training,  53.     The  isolation  of  this  case,  54  .        23-55 

Chapter  IV.  The  Church  of  Corinth  (^continued). 

Property,  56.  Lawsuits,  57.  Unwillingness  to 
give,  57.  The  collection,  58.  Disorders  at  the 
common  meals,  60.  Drunkenness  and  slander, 
63.  The  "  strong  "  and  the  "  weak,"  64.  Liber- 
tinism, 65.  Asceticism,  68.  Paul's  attitude 
towards  it,  69.  Parties,  71.  Their  relation  to 
the  Apostle,  74.  Judaistic  agitation,  75.  Final 
judgment,   78 56-80 

Chapter    V.    The    Churches    of    Macedonia  :    Thessal- 
onica  and  Philippi. 

The  towns,  81.  Foundation  of  the  churches  and 
their  intercourse  with  Paul,  82.  The  Epistles,  84. 
Common  features,  84.  Immature  Christianity 
of  Thessalonica,  86.  Community  of  feeling,  87. 
Conspicuous  Christian  consciousness,  89-  Over- 
trained expectation  of  the  Parousia,  90,  Its  evil 
consequence,  viz.,  disorders,  91-  Mature  Chris- 
tianity of  Philippi,  ^S.  Close  relations  with  the 
Apostle,  94.  Missionary  zeal,  ^5.  Exhortations 
reminders,  not  reproaches,  95.  Feeling  of  unity, 
96.     Organisation,  96.      Final  judgment,  98         .        81-98 

Chapter    VI.    The    Churches  of  Asia    Minor  :    Galatia 
AND   Phrygia. 

Paul's  labours  in  Asia  Minor,  ^Q.  Ephesus,  100. 
Conflict  with  superstition  and  trade  jealousy,  100. 
Galatia  and  P/m/gia,  102.  Resemblances  and 
differences,  102.  Single  instances  of  defect,  104. 
Good  sides  of  the  Church  life,  105.     Interruption 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS  xix 


PAGES 


of  the  noiinal  development,  106.  Galatia : 
Judaistic  agitation,  106.  Its  nature  and  the 
grounds  of  its  success,  108.  The  law  seemingly 
a  higher  morality^  108.  Evil  consequence,  viz., 
discord,  110.  Phrygia  (Colossce) :  asceticism, 
perfect  morality.  111.  Causes  of  the  tendency 
to  asceticism,  113.  Effects,  115.  Epistle  to 
Philemon:  The  question  of  slavery,  115       .  .     99-1-0 

Chapter  \\\.  The  Church  of  Rome. 

Paul's  relation  to  Rome,  121.  The  Epistle  to  the 
Romans,  121.  Origin  of  Roman  Christianity,  122. 
House-Churches,  122.  Doubts  and  antitheses, 
12-i.  Vegetarianism,  126.  Its  extent  at  the 
time,  126.  Motives,  127.  Legalism,  128.  The 
Sabbath,  128.  "Strong"  and  "weak,"  129. 
Attitude  towards  the  authorities,  129-  Taxes, 
130.  Romans  aii-,riv.  as  expressing  the  Apostle's 
average  experience  in  his  Churches,  132.  Survey 
of  the  Pauline  Churches,  133       ....    121-137 

BOOK    II.  JEWISH  CHRISTENDOM. 

Chapter  VIII.   The    Primitive    Church,  the   Church  of 
Jerusalem. 

Jewish  morality,  1S8.  Significance  of  the  law, 
139.  The  Church  of  Jerusalem,  141.  The 
ideal  wholly  Jewish,  141.  Peculiarities  of  the 
Christians,  142.  Community  of  goods.  143. 
Family  character,  144.  Joy  of  confession,  145. 
Moral  troubles,  Ananias  and  Sapphira,  146. 
Disputes  between  the  Hebrews  and  the  Hellen- 
ists, 147 138-148 

Chapter  IX.   Further  Development. 

Various  tendencies,  149.  Peter  and  the  disciples, 
1 50.  The  Hellenists,  1 50.  James  and  enthusiasm 
for  the  law,  151.  Victory  of  the  Judaistic  ideal 
in  Jerusalem,  151.  The  Apostolic  decree,  151. 
James  the  representative  of  the  Jewish  ideal, 
153.  The  Jewish  ideal  found  in  the  Lord's 
sayings,  155.  Organisation,  157.  Mission-work 
on  Jewish  soil,  158 149-159 


XX  TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 

Chapter  X.  Judaistic  Propaganda. 

PAGES 

Propaganda  among  Gentile-Christians,  l60.  An- 
tioch,  162.  Corinth,  l63.  Galatia,  l65.  Rome, 
166.  Criticism:  a  moral  supplement  to  Paul's 
preaching,  I66   .  .  .  .  .  .  .    l60-l67 

Chapter  XI.  Jewish  Christendom  of  the  Later  Period. 

The  altered  situation,  168.  Continuance  of  the 
two  tendencies,  169-  Sayings  of  the  Lord  in  the 
Gospels  of  the  Hebrews,  169-  Final  judgment, 
171 168-172 


BOOK  III.  LATER   CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE 
HEATHEN. 

Chapter     XII.  The     Churches     still     under     Pauline 
Influence — Asia  Minor. 

Relation  to  the  Pauline  period,  1 74  The  Christen- 
dom of  ^Am  Mmor,  175.  Sources:  Ephesians  and 
1  Peter,  175.  The  moral  aspect  of  Cliristianity 
emphasised,  176.  Effect  on  devotional  life,  177, 
and  conceptions  of  faith,  178.  Contrast  with 
heathendom,  178.  Heathen  calumnies,  179- 
Missionary  task,  181.  Positive  conception  of 
duties,  181.  Development  of  the  ideal :  Bibliciz- 
ing.  183.  Christianizing:  Jesus — Word  and 
Pattern,  184.  Maturing  of  the  communities, 
185.  Advance  in  actual  moral  standing,  187. 
Relaxation  of  moral  energy,  188.  General  esti- 
mate, I89.  Dangers  of  developing  hierarchy, 
189-     Dangers  of  developing  heresy,  193    .  .   173-194 

Chapter     XIII.  The    Churches     still    under     Pauline 
Influence — Rome  and  Corinth. 

The  Church  of  Rome:  Sources,  195.  The  general 
situation,  195.  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews:  Persecu- 
tion and  apostasy,  196.  Moral  earnestness,  ^00. 
Good  sides  of  the  Church  life,  200.  Constitution, 
doctrine,  worship,  201,  Advance  on  the  Pauline 
period,  203.  Further  advance,  203.  1st  Epistle 
of  Peter  and  1st  Epistle  of  Clement,  203.  Concern 
for  all  Christendom,  204.  Principle  of  order 
in  constitution  and  worship,  205.  Practical 
Christianity,  207.     Moral  training,  208.     Points 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS  xxi 


PAGES 


of  progress,  209.  New  dangers,  209-  The 
Church  of  Corinth,  210.  1st  Epistle  of  Clement, 
211.  Former  high  standing,  211.  Present 
decline,  213.  Disorders,  214.  Causes,  215. 
Effects,  216.     Survey,  217  .  .  •  •    195-217 

Chapter  XIV.  The  Johannean  Circle. 

John  of  Asia  Minor,  2 1 8.  His  dominating  influence, 
220.  Conflicts  with  pai'ticular  Churches,  220. 
(3rd  John),  220.  Conflict  with  false  teaching, 
222.  (2nd  John.)  The  verdict  upon  the 
Churches  in  Apoc.  ii.,  m.,  225.  Moral  torpor, 
228.  Relaxation  of  moral  energy  and  the 
conflict  with  it  in  1st  John,  229.  The  Gospel  of 
/oA«  as  reflecting  the  age,  230    .  .  .  .218-234 

Chapter    XV.    The  Johannean    Circle    (continued) :    The 
Churches  in  the  Time  of  Ignatius. 

Ignatius,  235.  Polycarp,  239.  Consciousness  of 
unity,  240.  Active  intercourse,  241.  Fixed 
organisation,  242.  Strict  separation  from  false 
doctrine  ;  docetism,  245.  Judaism,  246.  Eleva- 
tion of  the  average  morality,  247.  Final 
judgment,  250    . 235-250 

Chapter  XVI.  The  Beginnings  of  Gnosticism. 

Nature  and  beginnings  of  gnosticism,  251.  Chris- 
tianizing, 251.  The  beginnings — fluctuating 
boundaries,  252.  Barren  intellectualism,  254. 
Lovelessness,  254.  Avoidance  of  confession,  255. 
Dualistic  asceticism,  258.  Its  nature,  258  ;  and 
stages,  260.  Celibacy,  261.  Position  of  women, 
263.  Surrender  of  property,  264.  Withholding 
of  sustenance,  266.  Antinomistic  libertinism, 
268.  Its  forms,  268  Criticism,  271.  Untruth- 
fulness, 273.  Impure  propaganda,  274.  Final 
judgment,  275 251-276 

Chapter    XVII.    The  Churches  of   the   Transition    to 
Catholicism. 

The  nature  of  Catholicism,  277.  Absence  of  local 
colour,  277.  Sources,  278.  The  ideal  :  the 
new  law,  278.  Twofold  morality,  279.  Principle 
of  order,  281.      Repression  of  the  free  ministers 


xxii  TABLE   OF  CONTENTS 

PAGES 

of  the  Spirit,  282.  The  office  :  its  dangers, 
requirements  and  rights,  284.  Arrangements  in 
the  Church,  286.  *  Worship,  287.  Church 
discipHne,  289-  Missionary  duty,  290.  Duty  of 
confession,  291.  Loyalty,  292.  Hatred  of  the 
Jews,  293.  Unity  of  the  Church,  295.  Unity 
of  the  congregation,  296.  Organisation  of 
charity,  296.  Private  charity,  300.  Rich  and 
poor,  303.  Labour,  304.  Sustenance,  304. 
Family  life,  304.  Slaves,  306.  Feeling  of  in- 
sufficiency, 306.      Actual  advance,  307  .  .   277-308 

Chapter   XVIII.    The    Churches    of    the  Transition  to 
Catholicism  {continued). 

Tlie  Church  of  Rome  according  to  the  Shepherd  of 
Hennas,  309.  Hermas  and  his  book,  310.  His 
confessions,  3 1 0.  Unchastity,  312.  Dishonesty, 
313.  Want  of  discipline,  314.  Joyous  Chris- 
tianity, 31 6.  Snj/vxi^a.,  318.  Cheerfulness,  319. 
Inwardness,  320.  Motives,  321.  The  Church, 
323.  Relation  to  the  State,  325.  Christian 
strangers  in  Rome,  326.  Church-work,  327. 
Persecution,  martyrdom  and  apostasy,  328. 
Half-Christians,  331.  Secularisation,  332. 
Separation  from  heathenism,  334.  The  clei'gy, 
335.  Quarrels  as  to  precedence,  337.  Heretics, 
337.  Discord,  338.  Devotional  life,  339. 
Fastdays,  340.  Baptism,  341.  Preaching,  342. 
Meetings  for  edification,  344.  Instruction  of 
catechumens,  345.  Practical  requirements,  346. 
Family  life :  unchastity,  349.  Divorce,  349. 
Differences  in  married  life,  352.  Position  of 
women,  353.  Discipline  of  children,  353. 
Order  and  cleanliness,  353.  Slaves,  353. 
Business  dealings,  355.  Wealth,  356.  Hos- 
pitality, 357.  Charity,  358.  Willingness  in 
giving,  359.     Final  judgment,  360       .  .  .  309-362 

CONCLUSION. 

The  problem,  363.  The  proper  standpoint,  363. 
Moral  conditions  of  the  age,  364.  General 
picture  of  Christian  morals,  368.  Ideal  and 
actual,  371.  Development  within  the  period, 
372.  Advance,  374.  Later  retrogression,  375. 
External  influences  :  the  Gospel  and  asceticism, 
376.     The  victory  of  Christianity,  378  .  .  363-379 


TABLE   OF   CONTENTS 


XXIU 


NOTES. 

1.  On  ancient  statistics  (p.  xxxiv)      .... 

2.  On  slavery  among  the  ancients  (pp.  ."3  ff.,  11.5  fF.) 

3.  On  the  divine  judgment  in  Corinth  ({)p.  44—52)     . 

4.  On  James,  the  Lord's  brother  (pp.  153  f.)     . 

5.  On  vegetarianism  in  the  ancient  world  (pp.  126-128) 

6.  On  the  terminology  of  morality     .... 

Index  of   Passages  Referred  to  or  Discussed 
General  Index         ....... 


PAGE 
381 

383 
387 
392 
396 
399 

411 
428 


CHRONOLOGY. 


year 

page 

Death  of  Jesus 

30- 

33  {}) 

Stephen's  Martyrdom     . 

31- 

34  {}) 

Paul's  Conversion  . 

34 

Death  of  James  the  Elder  . 

44 

Apostolic  Council  . 

51 

99 

Paul  in  Macedonia 

Summer,  52 

81 

Arrival  in  Corinth 

Autumn,  52 

13 

„           Ephesus 

„         54 

100 

Collection  Journey 

57, 

58 

102 

Imprisonment  in  C.esarea 

58- 

-60 

102 

,,            IN  Rome   . 

61- 

-63 

93 

Epistle  to   Philippians    . 

62 

93 

Death  of  James 

62 

) 

„          Paul 

63 

>      169 

,,         Peter     . 

64 

Introduction 


THE  PROBLEM  AND  THE  SOURCES. 

"  The  Christians  have  received  the  commandments 
(of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ),  which  they  have  engraved 
on  their  minds  and  keep  in  the  hope  and  expectation 
of  the  world  to  come  ;  wherefore,  they  do  not  commit 
adultery  nor  fornication,  they  do  not  bear  false  wit- 
ness, they  do  not  deny  a  deposit,  nor  covet  what  is 
not  theirs.  They  honour  father  and  mother ;  they 
do  good  to  their  neighbours,  and  when  they  are 
judges  they  judge  uprightly.  They  do  not  worship 
idols  made  in  the  form  of  man ;  and  whatever  they 
•  do  not  wish  that  others  should  do  to  them,  they  do 
not  practise  towards  others  ;  they  do  not  eat  of  food 
consecrated  to  idols,  for  they  are  undefiled ;  those 
who  grieve  them  they  comfort,  and  make  them  their 
friends ;  they  do  good  to  their  enemies ;  their  wives, 
O  King,  are  pure  as  virgins,  and  their  daughters 
modest ;  their  men  abstain  from  all  unlawful  wedlock 
and  from  all  impurity,  in  the  hope  of  the  recompense 
to  come  in  another  world  ;  if  any  of  them  have  bond- 
men, bondwomen,  or  children,  they  persuade  these  to 

XXV  c 


xxvi         EARLY   CHRISTIAN   COMMUNITIES 

become  Christians  for  the  love  that  they  have  towards 
them  ;  and  when  they  have  become  so,  they  call  them 
without  distinction  brethren.  They  do  not  worship 
strange  gods  ;  they  walk  in  all  humility  and  kindness, 
and  falsehood  is  not  found  among  them.  They  love 
one  another.  From  the  widows  they  do  not  turn 
away  their  countenance ;  they  rescue  the  orphan 
from  him  who  does  him  violence :  he  who  has  gives 
to  him  who  has  not,  without  grudging ;  and  when 
they  see  a  stranger,  they  bring  him  to  their  dwellings, 
and  rejoice  over  him  as  over  a  true  brother ;  for  they 
do  not  call  themselves  brothers  after  the  flesh,  but 
after  the  Spirit  and  in  God.  When  one  of  their  poor 
passes  away  from  the  world,  and  any  of  them  sees  it, 
then  he  provides  for  his  burial  according  to  his  ability  ; 
and  if  they  hear  that  any  of  their  number  is  imprisoned 
or  oppressed  for  the  name  of  their  Messiah,  all  of  them 
provide  for  his  needs,  and  if  it  is  possible  they  deliver 
him. 

"  If  there  is  among  them  some  one  poor  and  needy, 
and  they  have  not  an  abundance  of  necessaries,  they 
fast  two  or  three  days  that  they  may  supply  his  want 
with  necessary  food.  They  observe  scrupulously  the 
commandments  of  their  Messiah :  they  live  honestly 
and  soberly,  as  the  Lord  their  God  commands  them, 
thanking  Him  always  for  food  and  drink,  and  all  other 
blessings.  And  if  any  righteous  person  of  their 
number  passes  away  from  the  world,  they  rejoice 
and  give  thanks  to  God,  and  they  follow  his  body, 
as  if  he  were  moving  from  one  place  to  another. 
When  a  child  is  born  to  any  one  of  them,  they  praise 
God,  and  if  again  it  chance  to  die  in  its  infancy,  they 
praise  God  exceedingly,  as  for  one  who  has  passed 


INTRODUCTION  xxvii 

through  the  world  without  sins.  If,  on  the  other 
hand,  they  see  that  one  of  their  number  has  died 
in  his  inigodhness,  or  in  his  sins,  they  weep  bitterly 
and  sigh,  as  over  one  who  is  about  to  go  to 
punishment. 

"  As  men  who  know  God,  they  ask  from  Him 
what  is  proper  for  Him  to  give  and  for  them  to 
receive.  Thus  they  complete  their  life-time.  And 
because  they  acknowledge  the  goodnesses  of  God 
towards  them,  lo !  therein  consists  all  the  beauty 
that  is  in  the  world. 

"  The  good  deeds,  however,  which  they  do,  they 
do  not  proclaim  in  the  ears  of  the  multitude,  and 
they  take  care  that  no  one  shall  perceive  them.  They 
conceal  their  gift,  as  one  who  has  found  a  treasure 
and  hides  it.  Thus  they  labour  to  become  righteous 
as  those  who  expect  to  receive  the  fulfilment  of  Christ's 
promises  in  the  life  eternal." 

In  these  words  towards  the  end  of  the  primitive 
Christian  era  Aristides.  the  apologist,  describes  the 
life  of  Christians  to  the  Emperor.  No  one  can 
refrain  from  admiring  the  wealth  of  moral  power 
revealed  in  the  picture.  But  does  it  correspond  with 
the  facts  ? 

We  take  up  the  Shepherd  of  Hermas,  a  Christian 
wTiting  of  about  the  same  date.  What  do  we  find 
there  ?  One  of  the  most  prominent  Christians  in 
the  community  has  to  be  severely  taken  to  task  on 
account  of  the  disorder  existing  in  his  home.  His 
wife  indulges  in  slanderous  talk,  his  children  have 
fallen  away  from  the  Lord ;  they  have  betrayed 
their  parents  and  plunged  into  excess  and  unchastity, 
while  the  father  does  not  move  a  finger.     Nor  is  this 


.«7" 


xxviii        EARLY   CHRISTIAN   COMMUNITIES 

state  of  things  confined  to  one  Christian  household. 
Even  in  the  case  of  the  leaders  exhortation  to  a  more 
righteous  life  is  required,  and  the  Church  cries  to  all 
the  "  saints,"  "  Ye  will  not  cease  from  your  wicked- 
ness." The  whole  composition  is  one  great  sermon 
on  repentance,  intended  not  for  the  heathen  but  for 
the  Christians  themselves. 

How  does  this  agree  with  the  beautiful  description 
given  by  the  apologist  ?  Which  of  the  two  is  right, 
Aristides  or  Hernias  ? 

We  shall  not  attempt  in  the  meantime  to  answer 
this  question.  It  raises  wider  issues.  It  brings  us 
face  to  face  with  a  problem  of  fundamental  signifi- 
cance for  the  criticism  of  early  Christianity  and  of 
Christianity  in  general.  That  Christianity  possesses 
a  moral  ideal  which  makes  it  superior  to  most,  if  not 
to  all  other  religions,  is  almost  generally  admitted. 
But  has  it  also  possessed  the  moral  power  to  realise 
that  ideal  ?  Has  it  transformed  its  confessors  into 
better  men  ? 

Greek  philosophy  also  de\  eloped  a  high  degree  of 
moral  perception.  But  it  was  just  here  that  it  failed  : 
it  believed  that  to  know  good  meant  to  do  it,  and  had 
little  or  no  notion  of  the  hostile  forces  of  evil,  of  sin 
in  men.  AVhen  St  Paul  says,  "  For  to  will  is  present 
with  me,  but  to  do  that  which  is  good  is  not,'"  he 
sums  up  the  moral  bankruptcy  of  the  best  in  the  pre- 
Christian  world. 

Christianity  introduces  a  new  spirit,  the  Holy  Spirit, 
wlio^reates  both  moral  judgment  and  moral  strength. 
It  IS  no  matter  whether  this  spirit  has  succeeded  in 
forming  connected  ethical  systems — a  New^  Testament 
ethic  has  of  late  become  a  frequently-attempted  task ; 


INTRODUCTION  xxix 

the  important  question  is  whether  in  individuals  and 
in  communities  it  has  manifested  itself  with  power, 
whether  it  has  made  Christians  of  heathen  and  Jews, 
whether  it  has  trained  the  immature  into  an  intelligent 
and  fully  conscious  Christianity. 

Can  we  pro\'e  that  it  has  done  so  ? 

It  is  well  to  state  at  the  outset  that  the  historical 
sources  are  far  from  sufficient ;  yet  they  always  admit 
of  a  coiiipeteiit  treatment  of  the  problem. 

In  no  source  at  our  disposal  is  there  any  attempt 
made  to  accomplish  the  task  we  are  undertaking. 
We  have  no  account  of  the  actual  moral  circumstances 
in  all  their  variety.  The  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  which 
must  naturally  appear  the  chief  source  for  the  apostolic 
age,  does  not  touch  the  question.  Luke  had  absolutely 
no  idea  of  writing  a  history  of  morals.  His  aim  was 
to  picture  the  victorious  progress  of  the  Gospel  from 
Jerusalem  throughout  the  world  as  far  as  Rome.  He 
is  entirely  dependent  on  what  his  slender  sources 
afforded  him.  Even  where  these  contribute  concrete 
touches,  such  as  would  be  of  the  greatest  interest 
to  us,  he  presents  them  in  such  a  rosy  hue  as  to 
make  it  difficult  to  obtain  from  them  any  accurate 
information. 

Much  more  important  are  the  epistles  of  the  New 
Testament,  especially  those  of  St  Paul.  They  are 
genuine  correspondence,  and  discuss  all  sorts  of 
questions  that  then  occupied  the  community,  and 
these,  owing  to.  the  nature  of  Christianity,  were  con- 
cerned not  only  with  tloctrines,  but  almost  more  with 
life,  usage,  and  morality.  The  two  epistles  to  the 
Corinthians  in  particular  place  an  abundant  supply  of 
actual  details  at  our  disposal.     Yet  they  fall  far  short 


XXX  EARLY   CHRISTIAN   COMMUNITIES 

of  a  complete  picture.  At  best  they  are  only  dashes 
of  colour  lacking  the  unity  and  background  of  the 
finished  work.  How  much,  e.g.^  lies  behind  occasional 
references  like  those  in  1  Cor.  i.  13  ff.  and  xv.  29, 
where  Paul  in  passing  speaks  of  baptism.  It  is  due 
to  a  lucky  chance  that  we  hear  of  the  presumptuous 
bearing  of  the  women,  yet  it  must  have  been  an 
important  fact  in  the  Church's  life.  Naturally  Paul 
writes  only  of  what  he  had  occasion  to  discuss.  As 
a  rule,  it  is  the  shadier  sides  of  the  moral  life  of  the 
communities  that  are  thus  brought  to  light.  Were  we 
not  to  supplement  the  picture  it  must  necessarily  be 
distorted.  Any  aspect  of  the  life  of  the  community 
to  which  no  allusion  is  made  would  seem  to  have 
given  no  occasion  for  reproach,  to  have  been  in  no 
way  reprehensible.  We  must  not  forget,  howe\  er, 
that  the  argument  e  silentio,  however  necessary  it 
may  be  as  a  corrective,  would  be  exceedingly  mislead- 
ing if  employed  absolutely  in  generalising  form. 
Further,  these  two  letters  to  Corinth  cover  a  space  of 
something  like  six  months.  We  can  perhaps  infer 
what  preceded  them.  But  what  followed  ?  Again 
may  we  apply  what  we  know  of  Corinth  to 
Thessalonica  and  Philippi,  where  our  information  is 
more  meagre  ?  By  no  means.  This  element  of 
momentariness,  this  local  colour  lies  in  the  nature  of 
the  letter,  constituting  and  at  the  same  time  limiting 
its  value  as  a  source. 

The  Epistles  of  Paul  are  followed  for  a  later  period 
by  other  documents  of  almost  equal  evidential  im- 
portance, because  we  owe  them  to  individuals  who 
were  in  actual  touch  with  the  concrete  circumstances. 
We   have  the  so-called  first  Epistle  of  Clement,  in 


\ 


INTRODUCTION  xxxi 

which  the  state  of  matters  both  in  Rome  and  in 
Corinth  is  indicated,  the  two  short  epistles  of  John 
and  the  seven  of  Ignatius.  Most  important  of  all  are 
the  seven  letters  of  the  Apocalypse.  Properly  speak- 
ing they  are  the  only  real  sources  in  our  domain. 
They  handle  expressly  the  question  we  have  raised 
and  throw  light  in  the  way  either  of  praise  or  of  blame 
on  the  condition  of  individual  communities.  But  how 
little  is  it  that  the  seer  indicates,  how  much  remains 
concealed  from  us  in  absolute  darkness  ! 

Among  the  epistles  of  Paul  and  Ignatius,  a  special 
position  belongs  to  those  written  to  the  Christians 
of  Rome,  as  neither  writer  had  any  personal 
acquaintance  with  the  facts  there.  Notwithstanding 
information  which  they  may  have  received  on  certain 
points,  most  of  the  colour  which  they  give  to  their 
account  of  matters  there  is  without  doubt  borrowed 
from  the  impressions  made  on  them  by  the  com- 
munities which  they  already  knew.  The  picture  they 
present  to  us  is  not  so  much  Rome  as  a  representation 
of  the  average  Eastern  community. 

This  brings  us  to  the  so-called  Catholic  epistles,  to 
which  must  be  added  those  to  the  Ephesians  and  the 
Hebrews  and  the  epistle  of  Barnabas.  These  "  open 
letters,"  as  we  might  more  aptly  designate  them,  are 
naturally  lacking  in  exquisite  freshness  of  spon- 
taneity, destination  to  a  distinct  circle  of  readers  and 
specific  occasion.  The  impressions  produced  are 
perhaps  more  trustworthy  as  a  whole,  but  the  pictures 
presented  are  far  less  distinct. 

These  are  all  compositions  of  men  who,  though 
they  had  active  relations  with  the  communities  con- 
cerned, were  yet   far   removed    from   them.       Occa- 


xxxii        EARLY   CHRISTIAN   COMMUNITIES 

sionally  Paul's  knowledge  rests  on  personal  observa- 
tion, but  as  a  rule  he  is  dependent  on  the  reports  of 
others.  Much  may  have  happened  which  he  never 
heard  of,  and  which,  consequently,  we  have  not  learned. 
Moreover,  his  standpoint  was  far  above  that  of  the 
communities  to  which  he  wrote.  To  this  extent 
it  may  be  maintained  that  the  epistles  of  Ignatius 
and  Polycarp  are  more  valuable  to  us  than  Paul's. 
In  their  own  personality  these  writers  represent 
a  portion  of  the  Christian  community  to  which  they 
belonged,  a  claim  which  cannot  be  urged  on  behalf 
of  Paul  to  the  same  extent. 

In  some  ways  more  importance  would  attach  for 
us  to  writings  originating  from  the  communities 
themselves.  Of  these,  however,  we  possess  but  few. 
Among  those  few  we  may  perhaps  reckon  the  gospels. 
Weizsacker  has  shown  how  these  are  to  be  employed 
as  sources  of  information  regarding  the  apostolic  age. 
The  traditions  of  the  sayings  of  our  Lord,  the  changes 
of  form  which  these  undergo,  the  emphasising  or 
weakening  of  single  words  and  whole  passages,  supply 
us  with  a  means  of  discovering  what  the  communities 
considered  matter  of  vital  importance.  In  this  re- 
spect still  more  valuable  is  a  work  like  the  Shepherd 
of  Hermas.  In  it  we  have  two  sides  reflected.  On 
the  one  hand  Hermas  is  an  average  representative 
of  the  Christian  community  in  Rome :  on  the  other 
hand  he  is  a  man  who  from  time  to  time  rises 
above  the  community  in  the  power  of  the  prophetic 
spirit. 

As  a  sermon  in  the  special  sense  of  the  word  be- 
longing to  this  period,  we  may  reckon  only  the  so- 
called  second  Epistle  of  Clement.     But  the  apologies, 


INTRODUCTION  xxxiii 

most  of  which,  it  is  true,  he  beyond  it,  may  be  con- 
sidered as  authorities  here.  As  we  saw  in  the  case  of 
Aristides,  these  attempt  at  least  to  give  as  compre- 
hensive pictures  as  possible  of  life  in  the  Christian 
communities,  and  call  attention  to  facts  which  we 
have  no  other  means  of  learning,  but  which  are  never- 
theless integral  parts  of  the  picture,  e.g.,  the  cordial 
participation  of  the  whole  community  in  the  domestic 
events  of  individual  members. 

We  shall  return  to  the  use  to  be  made  of  the 
Didache  and  such  literature  as  bears  on  the  consti- 
tution of  the  Church. 

However  extensive  the  material  at  our  disposal 
may  seem  to  be  (and  for  the  later  decades  of  our 
period  it  increases  in  amount,  though  not  in  signifi- 
cance), it  does  not  provide  us  with  a  comprehensive 
picture.  We  possess  much  information  about 
Corinth  in  tEe  time  of  l*aul,  but  only  for  a  few  years. 
The  next  time  we  come  across  Corinth  in  our  sources^ 
is  a  full  generation  later.  Of  Ephesus  in  the  Apostle's 
time  we  know  almost  nothing,  and  of  Antioch  still 
less.  Yet  these  Churches  must  have  had  very  great 
significance.  Our  greatest  difficulties  are  connected 
with  the  Jerusalem  Church.  Direct  sources  are  here 
so  deficient  that  nearly  everything  is  pure  deduction. 
Deductions,  however,  are  possible.  The  same  may 
be  said  of  the  two  main  tendencies  in  the  early 
Church  which  lie  near  the  main  current  of  its 
historical  development,  Judaism  and  Gnosticism. 
For  what  we  know  of  these,  we  are  indebted  almost 
exclusively  to  those  who  combated  them.  For  this 
reason  we  are  justified  in  reading  between  the  lines 
of    the    controversy,    and    in    emphasising   the    few 


xxxiv       EARLY   CHRISTIAN   COMMUNITIES 

remnants  of  original  sources  in  a  way  that  would 
not  be  admissible  were  the  material  richer. 

One  of  the  chief  blanks  in  our  tradition  is  the 
absence  of  almost  all  that  modern  statistics  demand. 
How  large  were  the  Churches  ?  Almost  nowhere  do 
we  meet  with  a  definite  number,  and  the  few  numbers 
which  we  do  have  are  uncertain.  Harnack  has 
recently  shown  the  complex  combinations  which 
the  calculation  of  the  spread  of  Christianity  with 
some  degree  of  accuracy  involves.  How,  too,  were 
the  communities  composed  ?  From  what  social  strata 
"did  they  acquire  their  members  ?  We  have  nothing 
but  indications  and  unsafe  conjectures.  According  to 
modern  views,  housing  arrangements,  rate  of  wages, 
and  other  questions  of  the  same  kind  are  of  great 
significance  for  the  development  of  morality.  In 
that  period  which  resembles  our  own  so  much,  this 
must  also  have  been  the  case  to  some  extent. 

No  such  question  is  ever  once  touched  upon  in  our 
Christian  sources ;  even  secular  works  give  us  no 
adequate  account  of  these  circumstances.  At  present 
there  is  a  very  keen  conflict  of  opinion  among  experts 
as  to  the  fundamental  questions  of  ancient  statistics. 

These  deficiencies  of  our  knowledge  must  not  be 
lost  sight  of,  otherwise  we  shall  enter  upon  our 
investigation  with  too  high  hopes.  Yet  our  task  is 
not  impossible,  for  there  is  much  that  our  sources  can 
reveal  to  those  who  know  how  to  interpret  them. 

But  are  these  sources  trustworthy  ?  The  instances 
which  we  began  with  bring  us  face  to  face  with  this 
question.  Has  not  the  Apologist  simply  taken  the 
Sermon  on  the  Mount  and  set  down  as  fact  what  is 
there  traced  out  as  the  Christian  ideal  ?     Has  he  not 


INTRODUCTION  xxxv 

represented  Christians  as  in  very  deed  what  Christians 
ought  and  desire  to  be  ?  We  shall  not  stop  to  ask  if 
he  could  have  ventured  on  such  a  course,  when  the 
heathen  were  ready  to  charge  him  with  falsification 
and  to  reveal  the  palpable  breach  between  the  ideal 
and  the  actual.  There  is  no  ground  to  doubt  the 
reporter's  integrity.  Nor  can  we  simply  cancel  the 
credibility  of  two  contradictory  reports.  For  it  is 
far  more  probable  that  they  provide  us  with  two 
aspects  of  the  same  picture,  the  one  emphasising  its 
lights  and  the  other  its  shadows.  This  is  the  case 
with  our  entire  material.  All  these  Christian  writers 
have  a  definite  end  in  view.  A  few  of  them,  where 
the  interest  is  mainly  apologetic,  have  embellished 
the  facts  to  impress  "  them  that  are  without,"  but  as 
a  rule  the  writer  addresses  his  work  to  his  brethren 
in  the  faith,  and  throws  light  upon  blemishes  rather 
than  merits.  We  must  not  expect  an  entirely 
objective  treatment  proceeding  upon  sober  and  dis- 
interested observation.  Such  a  representation  could 
come  only  from  the  hands  of  one  who  stood  apart. 
But  in  this  case  it  is  just  the  heathen  writers  that 
are  most  untrustworthy.  Tacitus  records  on  mere 
hearsay  all  the  calumnies  that  were  rife  among  the 
people  ;  and  when  a  man  like  Pliny  came  to  be  better 
informed  on  Christianity,  he  changed  his  opinion 
about  it,  but  thought  it  beneath  his  dignity  to  do 
anything  more  in  the  matter.  From  the  Jews  no 
contribution  at  all  is  to  be  expected. 

Thus  we  remain  practically  dependent  on  the 
sources  mentioned  above.  Even  these  require  to  be 
employed  with  due  consideration  of  their  aim  and 
point  of  view.     The  most  important  material  at  our 


xxxvi       EARLY   CHRISTIAN    COMMUNITIES 

command  is  without  doubt  that  which  these  sources 
unconsciously  supply,  facts  altogether  independent  of 
the  writer's  personal  views.  Such  facts,  however,  are 
few,  and  we  should  deprive  ourselves  of  substantial 
assistance  did  we  consider  nothing  else.  However 
poor  we  are  in  accurate  information  as  to  the  moral 
standing  of  the  communities,  the  moral  views  of 
primitive  Christian  writers  are  quite  clear.  It  is  by 
no  means  so  difficult  to  construct  a  New  Testament 
ethic  out  of  these  sources.  There  is  a  great  tempta- 
tion to  write  one.  But  as  our  desire  is  to  present  not 
theory  but  fact,  not  reflections  but  actual  ethical 
forces,  we  must  exclude  all  mere  theorising  and 
speculation.  Yet  whatever  has  a  practical  aim, 
whatever  comes  before  us  in  the  form  of  counsel, 
belongs  in  many  ways  to  our  theme.  Exhortations, 
especially  when  frequently  repeated,  enable  us  to 
form  conclusions  as  to  actual  defects.  A  passage 
like  Rom.  xii.-xiv.  is  in  this  respect  specially  instruc- 
tive, as  it  is  based  upon  the  Apostle's  observations 
in  all  his  Churches.  Conclusions  of  this  kind,  how- 
ever, are  not  always  justified.  There  are  exhortations 
which  have  become  so  to  speak  stereotyped,  belonging 
simply  to  the  set  form  of  Christian  counsel.  In 
the  Didache  (chaps,  i.-vi.)  and  in  the  Epistle  of 
BarnaBas  (chaps,  xviii.  xx.)  a  pre-Christian  Jewish 
catechism  is  incorporated.  We  cannot  discover  from 
its  instructions  the  failings  of  the  Christian  com- 
munities in  which  it  was  employed.  Yet  here,  too, 
we  possess  available  material.  For — and  this  is  the 
second  point — we  can  draw  from  it  a  picture  of  the 
living  ideal  of  the  Christians.  This  ideal  we  must 
^ow,  or  we  shall  be  quite  unable  to  estimate  the 


INTRODUCTION  xxxvii 

actual  state  of  matters.  It  would  be  unjust  to 
measure  the  moral  standing  of  a  primitive  Christian 
community  by  our  own  moral  standard.  It  would 
be  equally  wrong  to  apply  one  and  the  same  standard 
to  the  Church  of  Jerusalem  and  the  Pauline  Churches 
for  the  purpose  of  estimating  their  moral  condition. 
We  must  always  ask,  what  was  it  these  Christians 
desired  to  be  ?  Not  till  we  know  that  can  we  decide 
correctly  what  they  were.  Lastly,  the  ethical  ideas 
of  leading  jnen  had  great  educational  significance  for 
the  Churches.  It  was  Paul  that  moulded  the  moral 
judgment  of  his  Churches  consciously  and  uncon- 
sciously. His  personality  operated  directly  in 
manifold  ways,  and  perhaps  features  of  it  whose 
practical  significance  was  not  quite  clear  to  the 
Apostle  himself. 

But  along  with  his  personality  there  were  his 
exhortations  whose  richness  is  only  partially  reflected 
in  his  epistles.  Oral  instruction  of  this  kind  would 
not  remain  without  fruit.  Constantly  reiterated, 
these  admonitions  must  at  length  have  passed  into 
the  moral  consciousness  of  the  Church,  and  to  some 
extent  become  operative  forces.  The  significance  of 
literature  bearing  on  the  Church's  constitution  like 
the  Pastoral  Epistles  and  the  Didache  lies  in  this. 
They  tell  us  what  ought  to  be,  and  enable  us  to 
conjecture  what  must  have  been  effected  in  course 
of  time.  In  spite  of  their  ascription  to  apostles, 
early  composition,  and  great  wisdom,  these  works 
would  not  have  been  preserved  had  they  not  proved 
themselves,  amid  continued  use,  to  be  an  effective 
means  of  religious  and  moral  instruction,  of  develop- 
ing a  moral  judgment  and  liberating  moral  energy. 


xxxviii    EARLY   CHRISTIAN   COMMUNITIES 

In  a  word,  our  material  is  much  more  copious  than 
at  first  sight  it  seemed,  only  we  must  know  how  to 
procure  it  out  of  the  sources.  It  is  impossible  to 
formulate  general  rules.  The  test  of  any  method  is 
its  application. 

One  question  remains  to  be  discussed.  If  the 
ideal  and  the  thoughts  that  determine  it  cannot  be 
disregarded,  should  there  not  be  set  forth  before 
everything  the  moral  ideas  of  Jesus,  the  demands  He 
made  on  men  ?  I  believe  not.  In  the  teaching  of 
Jesus  two  distinctions  are  to  be  made.  We  have 
first  of  all  the  single  utterances.  These  are  not 
intended  as  a  series  of  ethical  injunctions,  as  a  new 
law ;  what  is  great  in  them  is  rather  the'  distinct 
separation  of  morality  from  the  domain  of  usage 
(Mark  vii.  14  fF.),  and  of  law  (Luke  xii.  14).  The 
later  conception  of  them  in  this  fashion,  their  varied 
effectiveness,  and  the  interpretation  put  upon  them, 
will  each  in  its-  own  place  engage  our  attention.  On 
the  other  hand  we  have  the  few  fundamental  ideas, 
the  joyous  earnestness,  the  sincerity,  the  inwardness, 
all  reaching  their  climax  in  the  cardinal  point  of  the 
relation  of  children  to  the  Heavenly  Father.  These 
require  no  further  definition.  Their  greatness  is  their 
simplicity.  Not  so  much  spoken  as  lived,  not  so 
much  handed  down  as  felt,  they  have  continued  to 
operate  as  forces  without  any  great  consciousness  of 
such  operation  on  the  part  of  men.  We  shall  see 
that  the  different  ideals  of  early  Christianity  have 
adopted  them,  but  have  not  exactly  sprung  from 
them.  The  course  of  Christ's  ministry  was  not  at  all 
adapted  to  form  the  basis  of  a  Church  or  an  ideal 
Church  constitution. 


INTRODUCTION  xxxix 

One  of  the  most  outstanding  features  of  that 
ministry,  the  cause  at  once  of  the  Pharisees'  mis- 
understanding and  hatred,  was  the  attraction  which 
pubhcans  and  sinners  had  for  Him.  He  did  not  keep 
apart  from  them,  neither  did  He  condemn  them.  He 
sought  the  lost  with  yearning  love,  in  the  sure  con- 
fidence that  moral  purity  can  never  be  polluted 
through  contact  with  tlie  impure,  but  that,  on  the 
contrary,  a  blessed  influence  streams  from  it  upon 
the  unholy,  that  good  is  mightier  than  evil,  God 
stronger  than  the  devil.  Applied  as  it  was  by  Jesus, 
this  was  something  absolutely  new  compared  with 
the  terror  of  pollution  adhering  to  all  ancient  religions. 
It  is  the  glory  of  Jesus  that  He  is  the  Saviour  of 
sinners.  Could  He  at  the  same  time  be  the  Head 
of  a  Chiu'ch  of  the  Saints  ?  That  His  disciples  must 
form  one  there  was  no  doubt.  The  difficulty,  as 
History  abundantly  testifies,  was  to  reconcile  those 
two  facts.  It  was  acutely  set  forth  in  Celsus'  criticism 
^Origines,  iii.  59),  and  is  expressed  shortly  and  clearly 
in  the  fact  that  into  the  mouth  of  Him  Who  said, 
"  I  am  not  come  to  call  the  righteous  but  sinners " 
(Matt.  ix.  13),  there  was  put  this  other  word,  "  I 
will  elect  for  myself  the  good  ;  the  good  whom  my 
Heavenly  Father  hath  given  me"  (Gospel  of  the 
Hebrews,  apud  Eusebius,  Theophania,  p.  234,  Lee). 


Christian   Life  in  the    Primitive 
Church 


Book  I 

THE  PAULINE  CHURCHES. 

CHAPTER  I. 

The  Education  of  the  Churches. 

Anyone  who  desires  to  estimate  the  morahty  of  the 
early  Christian  Churches  must  enquire  first  of  all  into 
the  manner  in  which  Christianity  morally  influenced 
mankind.  The  most  important  factor,  of  course,  was 
the  new  Spirit  which  it  communicated,  and  which  in 
the  domain  of  morals  also  constituted  the  enabling 
power.  But  this  power  required  to  be  laid  hold  of,  and 
guided  to  a  definite  end.  A  new  ideal  of  life  had  to 
be  imparted  to  men,  while  existing  moral  sensibilities 
and  notions  had  to  be  radically  transformed. 

We  know  little  of  the  nature  of  Paul's  missionary 
preaching,  at  least  in  its  ethical  aspect.  It  is  not 
improbable  that  this  particular  element  was  made 
very  considerably  subservient  to  the  great  fact  of 
salvation,  of  which  the  Apostle  felt  himself  to  be  the 
preacher  (1  Cor.  ii.  2).      In  particular,  this  is  likely 

1 


2  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

to  have  been  the  case  in  the  synagogue  and  among 
those  God-fearing  heathen  who  had  already  received 
some  degree  of  moral  training  in  it.  Moral  in- 
struction was  not — could  not  be — entirely  neglected. 
The  two  epistles  which  he  wrote  to  the  two  churches 
as  yet  unknown  to  him  personally,  the  Colossians 
and  the  Romans,  bear  witness  to  this.  In  the  former, 
we  have  the  famous  table  of  domestic  duties,  iii.  18 ; 
while  the  latter  gives  us  a  still  more  comprehensive 
picture  of  Christian  morality  in  hortatory  form.  To 
these  we  must  add  some  passages  in  the  other  epistles, 
where  Paul  appeals  to  earlier  utterances  of  his  own. 
These  form  direct  and  telling  evidence  of  the  moral 
character  of  Christianity.  The  exhortations  previously 
given  to  the  Thessalonians  deal  with  chastity  and 
honesty  (1  Thess.  iv.  1  if.).  In  writing  to  the 
Corinthians  (1  Cor.  vi.  9,  cf.  iii.  16,  vi.  15)  the 
apostle  takes  for  granted  their  knowledge  that  those 
who  are  stained  with  heathen  vices  shall  not  enter  into 
the  Kingdom  of  God.  The  Galatians  had  already 
received  the  same  warning  (Gal.  v.  21).  In  the 
same  passage  he  recounts  what  he  considers  to  be 
absolutely  incompatible  with  Christianity.  {Cf.  also 
2  Cor.  xii.  20,  Col.  iii.  5,  Rom.  i.  29  ff.) 

These  enumerations  of  vices  are  not  altogether 
new.  Paganism  knew  something  similar ;  in  orphic 
circles  this  was  the  form  in  which  ethics  were  treated. 
"\(Paul  was  influenced  chiefly  by  the  method  which 
the  Jews  followed  in  the  instruction  of  proselytes ; 
but  he  does  not  follow  any  one  pattern  slavishly. 
There  are  no  two  enumerations  which  entirely  agree. 
Under  the  influence  of  his  environment  he  was  always 
able  to  bring  forward  new  aspects  of  moral  truth. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  CHURCHES   3 

Bearing  in  mind  the  necessities  of  his  readers,  he 
emphasised  now  one  point,  now  another.  With 
keen  eye  he  detected  racial  faihngs  as  well  as  those  f 
confined  to  special  localities,  and  sought  from  the  ' 
outset  to  combat  them.  It  was,  in  the  first  place, 
sins  of  the  flesh,  unchastity  culminating  in  "that  ] 
which  is  against  nature,"  that  met  the  Apostle  at 
every  step,  and  especially  in  Corinth,  as  the  character- 
istic of  contemporary  heathendom.  Heathen  ethic 
went  far  when  it  made  adultery  punishable.  St 
Paul  went  beyond  that,  combating  at  once  all  un- 
lawful sexual  intercourse  and  all  excesses  of  the  life  . 
of  pleasure  tending  thereto.  In  Jewish  thought 
whoredom  and  idolatry  are  very  closely  connected. 
Paul  represents  covetousness  also  as  equivalent  to 
idolatry  (Col.  iii.  5).  Self-seeking  in  all  the  various 
forms  in  which  it  disturbs  the  peace  of  church  life 
makes  the  second  category.  More  than  once  Paul 
had  occasion  to  lay  great  stress  on  this.  It  was 
certainly  his  own  experience  he  was  recording  when 
he  characterised  the  heathenism  of  the  time  as  im- 
piety towards  gods  and  men,  and  especially  towards 
parents,  and  as  destitute  of  truth  and  love  (Rom.  i. 
30  f ).  In  all  this  he  sees  works  of  the  flesh,  move- 
ments of  the  natural  man  in  his  state  of  alienation 
from  God.  In  a  remarkable  way  he  sets  over  against 
this  condition  the  Christian  ideal,  as  the  fruit  of  tlie 
Spirit,  the  uniform  sentiment  of  men  bound  to  God 
through  the  Spirit  of  Jesus  Christ,  unfolding  itself  in 
love,  j  oy ,  peace,  long-suffering,  kindness,  goodness,  faith- 
fulness, meekness,  temperance  (Gal.  v.  22  f).  That 
a  corresponding  outward  demeanour  shall  accompany 
such  inward  disposition  follows  as  a  matter  of  course. 


4  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

Naturally  enumerations  like  these  do  not  embrace 
the  whole  field  of  the  Apostle's  ethical  teaching. 
With  an  "  and  such  things  "  he  gives  the  thoughts  of 
his  readers  room  to  supply  out  of  their  recollection 
of  his  earlier  instructions  what  appears  to  them  to  be 
important  in  the  present  case. 

It  is  only  when  writing  to  churches  where  he  has 
not  as  yet  worked  personally  that  he  thinks  it  M^se 
to  state  in  rather  more  detail  the  moral  ideal  of 
Christianity. 

In  the  first  place  we  have  the  valuable  table  of 
domestic  duties  in  the  Epistle  to "  the  Colossians 
(iii.  18-iv.  2),  which  became  the  pattern  for  so  many 
old  and  new  systems.  Here  also  we  find  in  the 
forefront  (iii.  5  fF.)  a  warning  against  the  vices  of 
fornication,  uncleanness,  inordinate  affection,  evil 
concupiscence,  and  covetousness  which  is  idolatry. 
These  are  expressly  represented  by  Paul  as  the  main 
characteristics  of  his  readers'  pre-Christian  life.  He 
demands  the  putting  away  of  all  such  vices, 
especially  anger,  wrath,  malice,  blaspheiny,  filthy 
communication,  lying ;  and  the  putting  on  of  a 
Christian  character,  a  heart  of  compassion,  kindness, 
humbleness  of  mind,  ineekness,  long-suffering,  for- 
bearance and  forgiveness,  love  and  peace.  To  this 
end  the  effectual  means  are  Christian  teaching, 
common  song  and  prayer ;  in  a  word,  the  decided 
turning  of  the  whole  community  and  of  the  indi- 
viduals who  compose  it  to  God  and  to  the  salvation 
given  to  us  in  Christ.  How  this  teaching  is  to 
find  expression  in  Christian  practice  the  Apostle 
indicates  in  a  few  powerful  touches.  The  subjection 
of  the  wife  to  the  husband,  which  in  heathendom  was 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  CHURCHES   5 

a  legal  slavish  relation  enticing  her  to  seek  emancipa- 
tion, becomes  for  Christians  a  voluntary  submission 
which  has  its  origin  in  Christian  decorum.  The  wife, 
in  return,  has  a  claim  to  love  and  good  treatment 
at  the  hands  of  her  Christian  husband.  So  too  with 
the  children.  Their  subjection  to  paternal,  or  as 
Paul,  adhering  to  the  decalogue,  says  significantly, 
parental  authority,  recognised  by  the  whole  ancient 
world  as  of  the  severest  kind  and  amounting  to 
absolute  deprivation  of  rights,  is  regarded  in  Christian 
circles  as  a  moral  duty  pleasing  to  God,  while  the 
obligation  to  loving  and  gentle  treatment  is  laid 
upon  fathers.  Slavery  is  not  abolished,  but  the 
condition  receives  a  new  moral  aspect.  The  vision 
of  the  exalted  Lord  gives  the  slave  joy  in  obedience, 
not  in  self-interested  service,  but  in  sincere  endeavour 
to  secure  the  true  welfare  of  his  master,  even  at  the 
risk  of  earning  punishment  instead  of  recognition : 
Christian  hope  holds  out  the  promise  of  future 
compensation. 

On  the  other  hand,  with  the  consciousness  of  being 
answerable  to  the  Lord  in  heaven,  the  Christian 
master  feels  the  duty  of  justice  and  reasonableness 
towards  his  slaves  quite  otherwise  than  if  that  duty 
were  grounded  on  Stoic  teaching.  The  passage 
closes,  as  it  began,  with  a  recommendation  to 
uninterrupted  prayer,  thanksgiving  and  intercession 
— a  remarkable  indication  of  the  source  which 
supplied  the  power  for  such  a  life. 

The  moral  ideal  of  Christianity  is  gone  into  with 
more  detail  in  the  exhortations  which  form  the  second 
part  of  the  Epistlejbo  tlie  Romans.  Here  in  the 
most  compressed  form    we  lia\  e  a  multitude  of  the 


6  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

highest  Christian  obUgations  poured  out  in  a  manner 
without  parallel  in  the  whole  field  of  Christian  litera- 
ture. In  the  front  stands  the  exhortation  to  de- 
liberate separation  from  the  heathen  manner  of  life  by 
consecrating  the  whole  man,  even  the  physical  being, 
to  God  (xii.  1  f.).  Thus  the  entire  moral  demeanour 
of  the  Christian  comes  under  the  category  of  a 
"reasonable  service."  His  highest  motive  and  aim 
is  the  fulfilment  of  God's  will  which  is  identical  with 
what  is  good,  acceptable,  and  perfect.  This  involves 
a  total  change  of  the  idea  of  worship.  It  is  no 
theurgic  action,  which  seeks  to  work  upon  the 
Almighty  and  so  to  extract  something  from  Him, 
to  turn  His  anger  aside  and  to  draw  His  saving 
power  to  one's  own  service.  Moral  conduct,  the 
voluntary  fulfilment  of  God's  will  is  the  "  reasonable 
service."  The  essential  equality  of  all  adherents  of 
the  Church  follows  from  this  view.  There  is  no 
longer  any  offering  or  any  priest,  but  different  forms 
of  activity  within  the  life  of  the  community  according 
to  the  variety  of  individual  powers  and  tasks.  To 
this  there  correspond  the  modest  recognition  of 
oneself  as  a  member  of  the  whole  body  and  the 
joyous  and  loyal  fulfilment  of  the  duties  that  fall  to 
one's  share  in  the  service  of  the  Church,  be  it  in  word 
or  in  deed,  in  teaching  or  edifying,  through  a  loan, 
legal  assistance,  or  alms.  Everything  turns  upon 
love,  which,  free  from  hypocrisy,  abhorring  evil,  and 
cleaving  to  good,  keeps  fast  hold  of  brotherliness  as 
its  goal,  yields  respectfully  to  others,  and  does  not 
seek  any  haughty  self-exaltation.  Christian  life  is  a 
restless  eagerness,  as  if  the  Spirit  seethed.  The  con- 
sciousness  of  serving   the  Lord  brings  joy  in  hope. 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  CHURCHES   7 

patience  in  suffering,  and  constancy  in  prayer.  It 
is  an  ardour  which  goes  beyond  one's  own  community, 
and  renders  to  Christians,  fi'om  whatever  locaHty, 
needful  support  and  hospitahty.  Even  that  does 
not  suffice :  Christian  morahty  soars  to  a  loftier  level 
still,  to  an  attitude  towards  enemies  that  contradicts 
all  natural  feelings. 

The  Apostle  here  expressly  inculcates  the  Lord's 
command  to  renounce  revenge ;  not  evil  for  evil,  but 
good  and  blessing  instead  of  curse  for  the  persecutor. 
The  truly  fine  revenge  of  satisfying  the  enemy's 
hunger  and  thirst,  which  the  wisdom  literature  of 
the  Old  Testament  had  already  enjoined,  here  finds 
its  still  higher  realisation  in  love  for  the  sake  of 
peace.  This  does  not  mean  that  all  natural  feelings 
are  to  give  way  to  a  stoical  arapa^la  or  the  callousness 
of  a  Buddhist  saint.  Everything  truly  human  is  to 
be  sanctified  ;  we  are  to  rejoice  with  them  that  rejoice, 
and  to  weep  ^vith  them  that  weep.  The  leading  note, 
here  is  not  the  thought  of  flight  from  the  world,  but' 
the  victorious  conviction  that  good  is  stronger  than 
evil.  Hence  follows  a  willing  obedience  to  the 
"  powers  that  be "  which  are  recognised  as  God's 
servants  even  when  making  inconvenient  demands  for 
taxes.  Hence  above  all  we  arrive  at  the  supreme 
principle  of  love  of  neiglibour,  which  transcends  the 
decalogue  as  obedience  transcends  law.  The  further 
discussion  of  the  relation  subsisting  between  the  weak 
and  the  strong  is  nothing  more  than  the  application 
of  this  principle  to  the  special  circumstances  of  Rome. 
The  prospect  of  the  ever- }i caring  salvation  exhorts  to 
ever-increasing  eagerness,  to  avoid  all  that  belongs 
to   the    works    of  darkness,    gluttony,   extravagance, 


8  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

anger,  and  all  that  fleshly  desires  excite  in  us,  and 
rather  to  lead  in  union  with  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
an  honest  life  that  does  not  require  to  shun  the 
light. 

This  specifically  Christian  character  is  emphasised 
by  Paul.  The  words  of  Jesus  Christ  form  the 
Apostle's  guide,  even  though  it  is  the  preaching  of 
Christ  and  Him  crucified  rather  than  the  words  of 
the  Lord  that  the  Apostle  has  in  his  mind  when  he 
writes  of  the  X6yo?  rod  Qeov  (Col.  iii.  6).  Christ,  the 
fulfilment  and  end  of  the  law  (Rom.  x.  4),  is  also  and 
in  a  higher  sense  the  founder  of  the  new  law  of  love, 
(Gal.  vi.  2,  cf.  1  Cor.  ix.  21),  not  as  the  teacher  of  a 
profound  exposition  of  the  law,  not  only  as  the 
pattern  for  Christians,  but  above  all  as  He  whose 
spirit  is  become  within  them  a  new  vital  power.  In 
mystical  union  with  the  exalted  Lord  (Rom.  xiii.  14, 
vi.  3,  Gal.  iii.  27),  the  Christian  attains  the  power  to 
realise  the  ideal  of  Christian  morality,  while  at  the 
same  time  the  prospect  of  the  Lord's  advent  sharpens 
his  feeling  of  responsibility. 

The  Apostle's  thoughts  are  so  fixed  on  the  exalted 
Lord,  that  the  Saviour  Who  walked  the  earth — apart 
from  the  few  sayings  of  Jesus  Christ  received  by  him 
through  oral  tradition — is  almost  entirely  lost.  Even 
in  his  thought  of  Christ  as  the  Pattern,  it  is  not  single 
features  of  the  earthly  career  of  Jesus  Christ  that 
float  before  the  Apostle's  eyes,  but  the  great  fact  of 
His  laying  down  the  form  of  Godhead  (2  Cor.  viii. 
9,  Phil.  ii.  5  fl".) ;  the  love  that  gave  itself  up  to  death 
(Gal.  ii.  20) ;  the  forgiveness  of  sins  (Col.  iii.  13),  and  the 
adoption  of  the  heathen  world  (Rom.  xv.  7).  It  was 
the  picture  of  the  transfigured  Christ  that  acquired 


THE  EDUCATION  OF  THE  CHURCHES   9 

a  tangible  form,  so  to  speak,  in  the  Apostle.  Hence 
by  way  of  supplement  he  can  say,  "Be  ye  followers  of 
me,  even  as  I  also  am  of  Christ "  (1  Cor.  xi.  1,  cf.  iv.  16, 
1  Thess.  i.  6,  2  Thess.  iii.  7,  Phil.  i.  30,  iii.  17,  iv.  9). 
St  Paul's  example  ranged  itself  effectively  on  the  side 
of  his  teaching,  and  it  was  a  picture  of  real  Christian 
morality  that  the  Apostle  supplied  to  the  communities 
which  he  addressed.  Recall  only  the  nmltitude  of 
outward  and  inward  troubles  which  he  bore  with 
patience  and  joy  (2  Cor.  xi.  23  fF.,  xii.  7  fF.) ;  the  un- 
selfishness with  which  he  toiled  at  night  to  maintain 
himself  (1  Cor.  iv.  12,  1  Thess.  ii.  9),  and  the  loving 
pastoral  care  with  which  he  tended  each  individual 
(1  Thess.  ii.  10  f ).  Paul  can  claim  to  have  fulfilled 
his  Lord's  commandment  to  bless  and  not  curse  one's 
enemy  (1  Cor.  iv.  12  f ). 

Paul  seldom  appeals  to  the  law  in  connection  with  "is. 
the  moral  demands  which  he  makes  (1  Cor.  xiii.  34)7"  ' 
From  Scripture  he  takes  only  occasional  instances  as 
examples  or  warnings  (Rom.  iv.  17  ff.,  1  Cor.  x.  1-11). 
All  the  more  weight  is  laid  by  him  upon  the  Christian 
consciousness  of  his  communities.  With  all  due 
regard  for  the  judgment  of  them  that  are  without 
(1  Thess.  iv.  12,  Col.  iv.  5),  they  were  nevertheless  to 
feel  their  complete  superiority  to  these  and  the  funda- 
mental distinction  between  them,  while  on  the  other 
hand  they  were  to  feel  themselves  members  of  the 
one  community  of  Christian  churches  (Rom.  xvi.  4-16), 
bound  to  the  most  consistent  ordering  of  their  manner 
of  life  (1  Cor.  vii.  17,  xi.  16,  xiv.  36),  to  the  maintenance 
of  the  tradition  which  had  come  to  be  formed  ( 1  Cor. 
xi.  2,  Phil.  iv.  8  f ),  and  also  to  mutual  support  (Rom. 
XV.  27) — these  things  he  continually  emphasises. 


10  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

'  Paul  knows  that  the  new  moral  ideal  is  not  reached 
with  a  single  stride ;  one  requires  to  be  trained  to  it 
wisely  and  patiently.  For  that  very  reason  he  lays 
stress  on  the  necessity  of  growth :  "  Now  is  our 
salvation  nearer  than  when  we  believed  ;  the  night 
is  far  spent  and  the  day  is  at  hand  "  (Rom.  xiii.  11  f.  ; 
cf.  Col.  iv.  5),  "  redeeming  the  time."  "  Watch  ye, 
stand  fast  in  the  faith,  quit  you  like  men,  be  strong  " 
(1  Cor.  xvi.  13). 

Paul  is  little  concerned  with  points  of  casuistry 
except  when  they  are  forced  upon  him.  Then  indeed 
he  feels  himself  to  be  the  authoritative  law-giver  of 
his  communities.  We  shall  find  the  first  epistle  to 
the  Corinthians  especially  to  be  the  forerunner  of 
apostolical  ecclesiastical  ordinances  (^mTaJei9,  cf. 
1  Cor.  xi.  34).  But  even  here  he  leaves  as  much  as 
possible  to  the  independent  judgment  of  the  com- 
munity (1  Cor.  X.  15),  and  the  individual  (1  Cor.  x.  27). 
/  He  still  relies  unreservedly  on  the  working  of  the 
Spirit.  Everything  turns  upon  Him  in  Christianity. 
He  not  only  points  the  way  (Gal.  v.  25),  but  at  the 
same  time  constitutes  the  enabling  power  (Rom.  viii. 
-12  fF.).  Such  a  Spirit  is  above  law.  He  produces  his 
results  spontaneously  in  the  love  whose  marvels  Paul 
has  celebrated  in  1  Cor.  xiii.  "  Inexhaustible  in  the 
creation  of  new  forms  and  manifestations,  He  fills  up 
all  blanks  in  the  code  of  duty  and  moulds  the  life 
from  inner  impulse "  ( Weizsiicker).  Where  this 
Spirit  was  a  living  power  and  found  such  eloquent 
expression  through  the  words  of  the  Apostle,  we  may 
be  sure  that  the  moral  life  would  assume  a  form 
worthy  of  God,  would  be  truly  Life  in  the  Lord. 
Is  this  a  confidence  which  the  result  justifies  ? 


THE  PAULINE  CHURCHES. 

CHAPTER  II. 

The  Church  of  Corinth. 

All  towns  bear  an  individual  character,  and  the 
particular  features  of  Corinth  are  familiar.  Occupying 
an  incomparably  favourable  site  at  the  meeting-place 
of  two  seas,  with  magnificent  harbours  on  both  sides, 
and  a  towering  fort  to  guard  it,  the  town  had  been 
famous  for  ages  as  the  wealthy  and  luxurious  Corinth. 
Timaus  (250  B.C.)  is  said  to  have  estimated  its  slave 
population  at  460,000.  After  a  century  of  desolation 
Corinth  quickly  recovered  its  former  greatness.  Once 
more  it  undertook  as  the  prized  inheritance  of  the 
past  the  conduct  of  the  Isthmian  games.  In  the 
new  Julian  colony,  it  must  be  added,  the  vices  of 
the  ancient  Greek  town  reappeared.  Here  the 
Proconsul  fixed  his  seat.  The  temple  of  Jupiter 
Capitolinus  and  of  Octavia  recalled  the  Roman 
foundation  of  the  city.  But  the  freedmen  of  Caesar 
were  quick  enough  to  adopt  Grecian  inanners,  although 
they  did  not  become  really  Greek. 

The  great  seaport,  as  is  so  often  the  case,  was 
cosmopolitan  in  character.  The  motley  population, 
thrown  together  from  all  the  nationalities  of  the 
earth,  lacked  every  bond  which  common  religion  and 

custom    could   give   it.     The   Jew  turned    his  steps 

11 


12  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

towards  the  synagogue,  the  Egyptian  towards  the 
magnificent  temple  of  I  sis,  while  the  Phrygian  wor- 
shipped in  the  sanctuary  of  the  "  mother  of  gods." 
The  greatest  attractive  power  for  all,  however,  be- 
longed to  the  temple  of  Aphrodite,  with  its  world- 
famous  cult  of  unchastity.  "  To  live  in  Corinthian 
fashion  "  was  a  bye-word  for  every  kind  of  debauchery. 
"  A  journey  to  Corinth  is  not  every  man's  business." 
JNIany  a  merchant  lost  the  cargo  of  several  vessels 
there. 

The  great  commercial  city  was  characterised  also 
in  dazzling  social  contrasts.  Round  those  favourites 
of  fortune  whose  riches  had  been  quickly  acquired,  and 
those  business  men  whose  wealth  had  been  painfully 
piled  up,  a  proletariat  gathered  of  sea-faring  folk, 
porters,  and  others,  who,  living  on  the  earnings  of  the 
day,  lived  only  for  the  day.  The  main  business  was 
the  transport  of  goods.  No  one  great  industry  pro- 
perly so  called  was  possessed  by  the  town  to  awake 
intelligence  and  at  the  same  time  to  stimulate  energy. 
In  such  unceasing  excitement  there  was  no  room  for 
science  and  art.  Instead,  artificiality  and  the  flowery 
rhetoric  of  the  Sophists  prevailed.  The  name 
Corinthian  denotes  the  most  ornate  of  architectural 
styles.  In  the  markets  of  the  world  the  city  was 
represented  by  its  fine  clay  wares,  antique  bronze 
vessels  (in  most  cases  imitations),  and  its  tapestry.  It 
possessed  the  most  lascivious  of  theatres,  and  listened 
to  the  shallowest  of  platitudes.  Its  philosophers 
were  cynics.  Along  with  memorials  of  Bellerophon, 
Medea,  and  so  on,  the  grave  of  Diogenes  was  pointed 
out,  and  strange  tales  were  related  about  him — how 
he  had  turned  upside  down  all  the  ordinary  ideas  of 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  13 

civilisation  and  manners.  The  Corinthian's  ideal  was 
the  unscrupulous  enforcement  of  his  own  individu- 
ality. The  merchant  toiling  upward  by  all  possible 
means,  the  glutton  yielding  to  his  every  desire,  the 
athlete  steeled  by  physical  exercises  and  bidding 
defiance  to  every  power — these  are  the  real  Corinthian 
types ;  in  a  word,  the  man  whom  none  surpasses,  to 
whom  nothing  is  impossible  and  nothing  denied. 

A  remarkable  contrast  was  presented  when  some- 
where in  the  autumn  of  the  year  52  the  Apostle  Paul 
left  Athens,  a  city  which  maintained  the  honourable 
tranquillity  of  ancient  Greek  custom  and  wisdom,  and 
found  himself  amid  the  bustle  of  this  modern  town. 
Yet,  strangely  enough,  what  he  sought  for  vainly 
among  the  philosophers  of  Athens — viz.,  responsiveness 
to  the  truth — he  found  here  among  a  mass  of  prole- 
tariat dri^-en  together  by  purely  earthly  interests.  His 
year  and  a  half  of  activity  must  have  produced  rich 
results.     A  great  church  arose. 

Three  years  had  passed  since  then.  In  the  interval 
ApoITos  had  made  the  city  the  scene  of  his  labours ; 
Paul  too  had  kept  up  his  connection  with  the  Church 
in  many  ways.  It  was  now  that  he  wrote  to  her  the 
first  of  the  two  epistles  which  we  now  possess.  A 
few  months  elapsed  and  the  second  was  dispatched. 
Much  may  have  occurred  in  the  interval,  but  it  is  the 
same  Church  that  is  depicted  in  both  epistles.  What 
sort  of  picture  then  do  they  present  ? 

If  only  we  possessed  more  information  as  to  the 
inner  circumstances  of  the  community  !  We  cannot 
estimate  the  numbers  with  any  degree  of  accuracy. 
Only  a  very  few  names  are  known  to  us.  Every- 
thing, however,  points  to  the  probability  of  the  com- 


14  THE   PAULINE    CHURCHES 

munity's  having  attained  a  considerable  size.  It  had 
outlying  branches  in  other  places  of  the  province  of 
Achaia  (2  i.  1).  In  the  port  of  Cenchrese  it  is  possible 
that  there  was  an  independent  church  (Rom.  xvi.  1). 

The  picture  usually  formed  of  this  community  of 
Corinth  represents  it  as  composed  of  merely  poor  and 
uncultured  people.  I  do  not  believe  that  correct. 
Paul,  it  is  true,  speaks  of  "  not  many  wise  after  the 
flesh,  not  many  mighty,  not  many  noble."  We  must 
distinguish,  however,  between  "  not  many  "  and  "  not 
any."  On  the  contrary  Paul  indicates  that  people  of 
superior  rank,  and  no  inconsiderable  number  of  them, 
did  belong  to  the  Church.  We  shall  see,  too,  how 
social  distinctions  cut  deep  into  the  life  of  the  com- 
munity. A  man  like  Stephanas  (1  xvi.  15)  must  have 
been  well  off.  Lawsuits  concerning  property  were 
certainly  not  raised  by  slaves  and  poor  seamen.  The 
Apostle  asked  the  Church  for  a  large  contribution  to 
the  charitable  fund  which  he  was  collecting.  If,  so 
far  as  he  was  himself  concerned,  he  renounced  all 
support  from  the  Corinthians,  it  was  not  because  the 
Church  was  poorer  than  others,  but  on  special 
grounds.  People  who  discussed  the  superiority  of 
Alexandrine  allegory  or  of  a  simple  style  of  preach- 
ing, could  not  have  been  without  considerable  culture. 

This  community,  indeed,  must  have  presented  a 
very  motley  appearance.  As  Paul  says,  there  were 
Jews  and  Greeks  there,  but  under  the  latter  designa- 
tion we  must  remember  he  includes  all  non-Jews,  the 
heathen  of  all  countries.  There  was  only  a  small 
proportion  in  whose  veins  Greek  blood  flowed. 
Romans,  Asiatics,  Egyptians — all  were  there  to- 
gether. 


THE    CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  15 

What  was  the  bond,  we  must  ask,  that  held  all 
these  together?  What  was  the  new  element  that 
gave  them  something  in  common  and  lifted  them  out 
of  the  world  that  lay  about  them  ? 

It  was  in  the  first  place  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ ; 
they  were  baptised  in  it  (1  i.  13) ;  they  confessed  it 
(1  i.  2).  The  power  contained  in  this  name  is  indicated 
to  us  by  Paul.  It  is  the  Shibboleth  which  reveals  the 
man  who  possesses  the  Spirit  of  God  and  the  man  who 
does  not.  The  glad  confession,  "  Jesus  is  the  Lord," 
and  the  hostile,  "Let  Jesus  be  anathema"  (1  xii.  3), 
are  the  two  antagonistic  forces ;  two  worlds  part 
asunder  on  this  name,  two  spiritual  kingdoms. 

In  the  second  place  it  was  the  Spirit  of  God 
possessed  by  all  of  them.  Who  manifested  Himself 
with  demonstration  and  with  power.  It  was  not  the 
knowledge,  however  important  and  rich  in  result, 
that  there  is  one  God,  Maker  of  Heaven  and  earth, 
which  was  the  distinguishing  element.  Many  Jews 
and  adherents  of  the  synagogue  already  possessed  this 
knowledge.  Everything  turned  on  the  possession  of 
the  Spirit  of  this  God,  Who  proved  Himself  to  be 
mightier  than  all  the  Spirits  and  demons  of  heathen- 
dom. It  was  in  the  full  sense  of  the  word  a  com- 
munion of  the  spirit  which  consisted  in  a  continuous 
and  incredibly  intensified  enthusiasm,  in  an  inspira- 
tion which  exalted  every  faculty  to  the  manifestation 
of  miracle  even  in  the  natural  domain.  To  this 
Spirit  nothing  was  impossible.  He  found  utterance 
in  ecstatic  speech,  imparted  hidden  mysteries,  and 
made  prophets  and  teachers  of  the  uncultured.  He 
inspired  every  sort  of  manifestation  of  ministering 
love,  of  guiding  wisdom,  of  self-sacrificing  devotion. 


16  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

He  performed  miracles,  he  healed  diseases,  moved 
mountains,  and  transformed  men,  who  felt  themselves 
miserable  and  oppressed,  into  a  cloud  of  witnesses 
overflowing  with  strength  and  courage. 

This  communion  of  the  Spirit  found  outward  unity 
in  the  devotional  meetings.  We  know  practically 
nothing  of  the  form  which  these  assumed,  when  and 
where  they  came  together,  how  often  and  for  what 
various  purposes.  We  may  suppose  that  the  house 
of  one  of  the  better-off  members  offered  the  com- 
munity hospitality.  At  the  outset,  according  to 
Acts  xviii.  7,  it  was  the  house  of  a  proselyte,  Titius 
Justus,  which  was  next  the  synagogue.  For  a  later 
date  Gaius  has  been  thought  of  (Rom.  xvi.  23). 

From  the  notice  concerning  the  collection  (1  xvi.  2) 
we  may  assume  that  the  first  week-day  (our  Sunday), 
as  distinguished  from  the  Jewish  Sabbath,  and  in 
commemoration  of  the  Resurrection  of  the  Lord,  was 
fixed  as  the  day  of  regular  assembly. 

Here,  however,  we  must  distinguish  between  meet- 
ings solely  for  edification  and  those  which  bore  the 
character  of  a  common  meal.  These  latter  certainly 
took  place  in  the  evening. 

To  appreciate  the  ethical  value  of  this  devotional 
life,  it  is  an  exceedingly  significant  fact  that  we  have , , 
to  assume  a  zealous  and  active  participation  of  all ' 
members.  There  was  no  trace  of  the  distinction 
between  a  ministering  clergy  and  a  worshipping 
people.  Every  one  took  part,  every  individual  con- 
tributed to  the  common  edification.  "  When  ye 
come  together,  every  one  of  you  hath  a  psalm,  hath 
a  doctrine,  hath  a  tongue,  hath  a  revelation,  hath  an 
interpretation  "  (1  xiv.  26).     The  marvellous  wealth  of 


THE   CHURCH   OF  CORINTH  J7 

the  Church,  for  which  Paul  praises  God  with  thanks- 
giving, consisted  in  this  manifold  and  effectual 
demonstration  of  the  Spirit  in  its  midst  (1  i.  4  f.). 

There   was,    however,    danger  involved,  and   first, 
the  danger  of  disorder.     Where  there  was  no  unified 
and  authoritative  management,  where,  too,  the  Spirit 
was  revealed  in  such  manifold  fashion,  confusion  was 
almost  unavoidable.     While   one   stood  prophesying 
before  the  congregation,  another  would  feel  himself 
seized   by  the    Spirit,    and    without    waiting,    would 
move  from  his  place  and  begin  to  speak  aloud.     Or 
there  might  be  some  ecstatic  pouring  out  a  flood  of 
inarticulate  sounds,  after  the  fashion  known  as  speak- 
ing with  tongues.     It  was,  to  be  sure,  unintelligible, 
but  there  was  profound  significance  in  it,  and  some  of 
the  congregation  possessed  the  gift  of  interpretation. 
But  no  sooner  had  one  begun  to  reveal  its  real  mean- 
ing, than  another  with  the  same  gift,  who  thought  he 
understood     better,    would     interrupt    with    a    cry 
(1  xiv.  27  fF.).     In   view  of  the  excitability  of  these 
Southerners,  it  is  hardly  possible  for  us  to  imagine 
the   animation  of  scenes   like  these.     The  fact  that 
nothing  worse  took  place  is    a  good  indication  that 
the  spirit  was  indeed  of  God.     Paul  bears  excellent 
testimony  to  the  Church,  when,  with  all  his  insistence 
on  order,  he  looks  to  its  own  intelligence  and  self- 
mastery  to  remove  all  these  blots.     He  does  not  once 
think  of  limiting  the  general  freedom  of  speech  by 
concentrating  the  direction  of  worship  in  the  hands 
of  a   single   person    or   a   few    individuals,  a   means 
adopted  in  a  later  period.     "  Ye  all  can  prophesy  one 
by  one."     All  he  does  is  to  prescribe  that   in   each 

meeting  not  more  than  two  or  three  prophets  shall 

2 


18  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

speak,  and  two,  or  at  most  three,  ecstatics,  each 
through  an  interpreter ;  but  they  are  to  speak  one 
after  another,  not  all  at  once. 

If  another  is  seized  by  the  Spirit,  then  the  first  is 
to  resume  his  seat— a  wise  precaution  against  too 
lengthy  addresses.  Those,  too,  who  are  moved  by 
the  Spirit  can  and  must  to  some  degree  retain  the 
mastery  of  themselves.  "  The  spirits  of  the  prophets 
are  subject  to  the  prophets," 

A  second  danger  consisted  in  the  wrong  valuation 
which  was  set  upon  these  operations  of  the  Spirit. 
The  common  notion  that  the  more  wonderful  is  also 
the  more  divine  was  to  be  met  with  within  the 
Christian  community  as  well  as  elsewhere.  Indeed, 
when  once  the  Spirit  came  to  be  looked  upon  as  a 
di^dne  power  affecting  the  natm-al  life  in  the  first 
instance,  it  was  only  to  be  expected  that  the  greatest 
demonstration  of  the  Spirit  should  be  found  where  the 
greatest  disturbance  of  natural  functions  took  place. 
Here  the  moral  worthlessness  of  such  a  view  came 
clearly  to  light.  It  recalled  the  old  heathen  mcmtic 
too  vividly,  which,  out  of  lifeless  things  like  the 
hollow  of  Jupiter's  Oak  at  Dodona,  or  out  of  the 
mouth  of  priestesses  in  a  state  of  narcotic  stupefac- 
tion or  ecstasy,  claimed  to  know  the  oracle  of  God. 
Almost  no  value  was  set  upon  the  simple  form  of 
sober  instruction  which  Paul  regarded  as  no  less  a 
gift  of  divine  grace  (1  xii.  28) ;  this  coveted  gift  must 
be  either  prophecy  or  glossolaly.  The  latter,  how- 
ever, on  account  of  its  unintelligibility,  was  ranked 
far  above  the  former,  so  that  all  were  fain  to  possess 
it,  and  probably  many  fancied  that  they  did.  Paul 
was  constrained  to  emphasise  in  the  strongest  terms 


THE   CHURCH   OF  CORINTH  19 

that  while  the  charismata  were  all  entitled  to  honour 
(1  xii.  1-3),  as  manifestations  of  God's  Spirit  (1  xii. 
4-30),  the  aim  should  be  to  strive  after  the  greater 
and  more  valuable  of  them  (xii.  31-xivl).  The 
greatness  of  a  gift  did  not  depend  on  its  miraculous 
form,  but  on  its  value  as  a  means  of  edification  for  the 
others  (xiv.  1-25).  The  speaker  with  tongues  there- 
fore was  to  pray  for  the  gift  of  exposition  (xiv.  13),  and 
prophecy  was  to  be  preferred  to  glossolaly  (xiv.  1  if.). 
In  the  last  resort  this  domain  also  was  to  be  governed 
by  the  duty  of  love  (xiii.) ;  it  is  the  revelation  of  moral 
energy  which  makes  a  deep  impression  upon  those 
without  (xiv.  23  ff.).  This  wonderful  development  of 
the  moral  judgment  which  Paul  here  describes  from 
nature  is  also  warranted  by  later  analogies. 

The  want  of  moral  grasp  which  we  detect  in  the 
Corinthians'  false  method  of  estimating  the  charismata 
by  their  external  form  appears  again  in  connection 
with  baptism.  The  rite  is  already  beginning  to  rcA' eal 
some  trace  of  the  sacramentalism  which  attaches  an 
external  efficacy  to  it  and  afterwards  led  to  the 
development  of  a  Christian  system  of  mysteries. 
How  little  anything  of  the  kind  was  in  the  Apostle's 
thought  is  shown  us  by  the  passage  in  1  Cor.  i.  14  fF., 
where  he  speaks  of  baptism. 

It  is  a  matter  of  secondary  importance  and  is 
entrusted  to  assistants.  He  had  himself  something 
of  greater  moment  to  attend  to,  the  preaching  of  the 
gospel  of  the  crucified  Christ,  contrary  to  the  present- 
day  practice  of  giving  every  deacon  or  licentiate  the 
right  of  preaching,  while  the  administration  of  the 
sacraments  is  restricted  to  the  ordained  clergy.  In 
view    of   this    1    cannot   believe    that    the    Apostle 


/ 


20  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

approved  of  a  usage  which  he  once  mentions  in  order 
to  draw  from  it  an  argument  for  the  hope  of  resurrec- 
tion among  the  Corinthians — the  practice  or  mal- 
practice of  being  baptized  for  the  dead  (1  xv.  29). 
As  regards  this  usage  we  can  only  suppose  that 
Christians,  out  of  warm  affection  for  departed  relatives, 
had  themselves  baptized  in  the  names  of  their  loved 
dead,  that  is  to  say,  had  their  dead  friends  initiated 
into  Christianity,  in  order  to  secure  for  them  also 
the  blessings  of  Christianity  and  the  future  everlasting 
life.  The  significance  of  the  act  of  baptism  as  a 
confession  was  thus  abolished,  and  it  was  deprived 
of  all  its  moral  effect  on  the  person  it  was 
intended  to  aid.  It  presupposes  a  magical  efficacy 
such  as  we  find  in  the  purification-offering  for  the 
fallen  (2  Mace.  xii.  42  fF.),  and  in  many  of  the  Greek 
mystery  rites,  even  if  there  is  no  sufficient  analogy 
for  vicarious  consecration.  It  is  remarkable  that 
views  like  these  should  appear  so  early  in  the  Christian 
Church,  but  in  itself  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at.  For 
they  were  only  the  adoption  in  the  Christian  domain 
of  prevalent  ideas,  inner  resemblance  of  the  method 
of  worship  providing  the  cause  and  want  of  moral 
vigour  the  impulse.  I  believe  that  an  injustice  is 
done  Apollos  when  he  is  made  answerable  for  this 
exaggerated  importance  attached  to  baptism,  as  a 
sacrament  which  produces  an  ex  opere  opeimto  effect. 
It  lay  in  the  nature  of  the  case.  Magic  is  the  com- 
plement of  mantic.  The  over-valuation  of  the 
"  Spirit "  avenges  itself  in  a  non-spiritual  and  morally 
indifferent  treatment  of  worship.  "  Spiritualists  easily 
become  Spiritists  "  ( Jiilicher). 

With  regard  to  the  Lord's  Supper,  or  the  meals 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  21 

which  they  ate  together,  a  similar  distortion  of  the 
Apostle's  conception  was  not  impossible.  In  certain 
passages  the  language  he  employs  can  be  understood 
to  indicate  a  purely  sacramental  operation  of  the  meal 
of  bread  and  wine,  and  at  a  later  date  actually  had  this 
construction  put  upon  it,  e.g.,  where  he  describes  the 
cup  of  blessing  as  "  the  communion  of  the  blood  of 
Christ,"  and  the  bread  as  "the  communion  of  the 
body  of  Christ"  (1  x.   16). 

By  these  words  the  Apostle  himself  understands  a 
token  of  fellowship  gathering  round  the  death  and 
resurrection  of  Christ  as  its  palladium :  but  it  would 
only  be  natural  that  the  Corinthians  should  to  some 
extent  understand  them  in  the  sense  of  a  "  medicine 
of  immortality,"  a  real  union  with  the  glorified  body 
and  blood  of  Christ.  He  sees  in  the  cases  of  sickness 
and  death  which  occur  in  the  community  the  divine 
punishment  of  the  profanation  of  the  Lord's  Supper 
(1  xi.  30).  They  might  conceive  this  to  mean  that  the 
consecrated  bread  and  the  consecrated  cup  of  them- 
selves bring  death  and  sickness  instead  of  the  hoped- 
for  immortality  to  those  who  eat  and  drink  unworthily. 
AVhere  there  is  no  proper  moral  insight,  everything, 
e^'en  the  highest,  the  purely  moral  notion,  becomes 
transformed  into  a  magical  "  something." 

This,  however,  was  not  of  much  importance.  On 
the  contrary,  what  Paul  has  to  complain  of  is  the 
want  of  solemnity.  The  sacramental  idea  is  still  prac- 
tically of  no  account.  The  Corinthians  treated  the 
Supper  as  a  common  meal,  where  they  feasted  and  drank 
to  the  full,  as  was  customary  in  the  festive  banquets 
of  the  heathen.  We  shall  have  occasion  to  return  to 
these  irregularities  at  the  Lord's  Supper  in  connection 


22  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

with  the  social  blots  in  Corinth.  Here  it  is  sufficient 
to  state  that,  along  with  the  want  of  love,  Paul  had 
also  to  contend  with  a  want  of  discipline  and  order. 

Two  points,  however,  are  clear.  The  Church's  wor- 
ship is  still  securely  based  on  the  principle  of  a  true 
service  of  God,  in  which  the  glorifying  of  God  goes 
hand  in  hand  with  mutual  improvement  in  spiritual 
edification.  There  is  no  indication  of  the  desire  to  make 
an  impression  upon  the  deity,  which  constituted  the 
kernel  of  every  pre-Christian  cult.  It  was  a  long  time 
before  Christianity  lost  its  insistence  on  this  point  and 
allowed  its  worship  of  God  to  sink  from  a  truly  spiritual 
and  moral  elevation  to  the  level  of  a  theurgic  act. 

The  second  point  is  that  this  devotional  life  forms 
the  only  unifying  bond  of  the  community.  We  shall 
afterwards  recur  to  the  weakness  of  the  Church 
consciousness.  In  ordinary  life  each  one  went  his 
own  way.  It  was  the  Spirit  which  was  felt  to  be  the 
new,  the  incomparable  possession.  But  this  Spirit 
appeared  not  as  the  moral  principle  which  penetrated 
and  glorified  all  religious  relations,  but  as  a  power 
which  in  wonderful  wise  magnified  the  natural 
capabilities  of  man.  He  did  manifest  Himself  also 
in  the  life  of  the  individual,  but  the  assembled  con- 
gregation was  the  special  field  of  His  operation. 

If  we  are  to  understand  the  moral  standpoint  of 
these  Corinthian  Christians,  we  must  view  them  as 
Corinthians  rather  than  as  members  of  a  Christian 
community.  In  spite  of  the  many  points  which 
distinguished  them  as  Christians  from  the  surrounding 
world — and  we  shall  come  to  see  these  with  more 
precision  and  in  different  aspects — the  non-Christian 
basis  everywhere  peeped  through. 


THE  PAULINE  CHURCHES. 

CHAPTER  III. 

The  Church  of  Corinth  {contimied). 

There  was  no  alteration  in  external  relations.  The 
Christians  occupied  the  same  house  as  before  and  had 
the  same  neighbours!  They  followed,  most  of  them 
at  least,  their  former  calling.  Those  who  were  slaves 
remained  so.  Rich  and  poor  were  still  there.  So  far 
was  the  Apostle  from  proclaiming  a  programme  of 
social  revolution,  that  on  the  contrary  he  declared, 
"  As  the  Lord  hath  called  every  one,  so  let  him 
walk"  (1  vii.  17  ff.);  whoever  was  a  slave  when 
converted  was  to  remain  a  slave. 

It  is  almost  impossible  for  us  to  understand  ade- 
quately the  difficulties  with  which  this  was  fraught 
for  the  earliest  Christians.  Even  the  mission-field  of 
the  present  day  (apart,  perhaps,  from  Japan)  does  not 
supply  anything  similar,  for,  as  a  rule,  the  preaching 
of  the  Gospel  is  accompanied  by  a  new  and  higher 
civilisation,  which  at  the  very  outset  raises  the  young 
Christian  to  another  plane  of  existence.  At  the  most 
we  can  observe  an  analogy  in  the  new  formation 
of  Protestant  congregations  amid  entirely  Roman 
Catholic  surroundings.  The  individual  experiences 
a  complete  inward  change.  But  the  outward  rela- 
tions remain  the  same.     How  was  it  possible  for  the 

23 


24  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

convert  to  avoid  dealings  with  his  former  companions, 
neighbours  or  friends?  The  Christian  slave  had  to 
obey  his  heathen  master. 

We  are  not  greatly  surprised  that  at  first  these 
Christians  continued  their  social  intercourse  with 
friends  who  still  remained  heathen.  How  little 
even  our  own  intercourse  with  one  another  is  regu- 
lated by  identity  of  confession  or  of  attitude  to 
the  higher  questions  of  life !  They  allowed  them- 
selves without  any  scruples  to  be  invited  to  the  house 
of  a  heathen  family  ;  some  of  them  had  no  qualms  in 
accepting  such  an  invitation,  even  when  the  banquet 
took  place  in  a  public  temple.  In  their  view  it  was 
no  more  than  social  fellowship.  Perhaps  they  knew, 
from  their  own  past  experience,  that  all  the  ceremonial 
observances,  with  their  accompaniment  of  offerings 
and  libations,  were  for  the  majority  mere  forms  com- 
bined with  more  or  less  superstition,  and  not  in  any 
way  an  affair  of  true  religion  demanding  a  corre- 
sponding inward  participation. 

Why  should  they  as  Christians  not  adopt  a  similar 
attitude,  and  treat  them  as  mere  empty  forms  ?  They 
knew  themselves  to  be  inwardly  far  superior  to  the 
original  significance  of  these  rites,  and  to  be  wholly 
emancipated  from  the  interpretation  which  super- 
stition gave  to  them.  They  could  not  eschew  inter- 
course altogether.     Where  was  the  limit  ? 

Business  also  brought  them  into  touch  with  the 
outside  world.  How  was  that  to  be  avoided  ?  It 
was  impossible  for  the  Christian  to  supply  all  his 
wants  from  companions  of  the  faith,  nor  could  the 
Christian  merchant  or  artisan  confine  his  customers 
to  these.     But  wherever  business  was  carried  on  by 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  25 

such  a  system  of  mutual  fraud  and  over-reaching,  as 
prevailed  in  the  ancient  world— -and  to  this  day  in 
southern  countries — disputes  were  bound  to  arise. 
And  where  there  was  a  regular  tribunal,  an  advantage 
which  the  Roman  colonies  enjoyed  over  many  pro- 
vincial towns,  it  was  only  natural  that  these  disputes 
should  issue  in  a  trial  before  the  pubhc  judge.  If  the 
quarrel  was  between  Christians  and  heathens,  no  other 
course  was  possible ;  and  that  they  should  pursue  the 
usual  course  even  when  the  quarrel  was  between 
Christians,  is  not  so  strange  as  it  appears  to  us  who 
from  the  outset  treat  the  matter  in  the  light  of  Paul's 
expressed  opinion. 

Naturally,  however,  this  continual  contact  with  the  \ 
outside  world  brought  many  dangers  for  the  inward 
life  of  Corinthian  Christians.  One  must  howl  with 
the  wolves,  and  whoever  lets  himself  quarrel  with 
one  who  in  point  of  culture  stands  beneath  him 
sinks  to  the  same  level.  Hence  we  can  understand 
how  the  Apostle  vigorously  insists  on  the  greatest 
possible^eparation  from  the  surrounding  world,  in 
which  insistence  probably  he  himself  represented  a 
not  inconsiderable  part  of  the  community.  It  is 
not  to  be  forgotten  that  Paul  was  a  Jew  to  begin 
with,  and  however  much  he  had  freed  himself  from 
all  the  exclusive  prejudices  of  Jewish  race  and  belief, 
his  views  of  life  were  nevertheless  quite  different 
from  those  of  the  majority  of  his  converts.  A  Jew 
looked  upon  aloofness  from  all  heathen  as  a  matter 
of  course.  He  did  indeed  deal  with  heathen  in  the 
way  of  business,  but  even  this  in  the  view  of  the 
stricter  rabbis  was  restricted  to  certain  branches  of 
commerce.     Never  might  he  enter  with  a  heathen 


26  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

upon  any  sort  of  social  intercourse  if  he  was  to  pre- 
serve any  trace  of  his  Jewish  character. 

The  closest  ties,  often  ties  of  blood,  bound  him  to 
his  own  countrymen.  The  synagogue  offered  him 
not  only  the  right  of  outward  protection,  but  above 
all  an  unconditionally  recognised  court  for  all  disputes 
among  its  members.  It  is  in  views  and  notions  so 
conditioned  that  we  must  find  the  key  to  the  under- 
standing of  the  opposition  which  Paul  and  one  section 
of  the  Christian  community  offered  to  the  probably 
more  common  procedure  sketched  above. 

Complete  separation  from  all  that  could  in  any 
way  entail  contact  with  idolatry  was  insisted  upon. 
Entering  a  heathen  temple,  no  matter  whether  with 
the  intention  of  worshipping  or  only  of  taking  part 
in  a  sacrificial  meal,  was  considered  total  pollution, 
and,  therefore,  directly  forbidden.  Intercourse  with 
heathen  in  their  own  houses  was  declared  to  be  at 
least  strongly  suspicious.  The  question  was  raised 
whether  the  unconscious  eating  of  flesh  offered  to 
idols  was  dangerous  for  the  Christian.  Here  we 
must  not  mistake  the  fine  distinction  between  the 
opinion  of  the  Apostle  and  that  of  the  Corinthians. 
The  result  is  about  the  same,  but  the  ground  is  quite 
different.  The  stricter  section  of  the  Corinthian 
Church  appears  to  have  been  guided  by  a  view 
borrowed  from  Judaism,  but  still  quite  intelligible 
to  the  converted  heathen,  to  the  effect  that  heathen- 
ism as  such  produces  an  outward  stain,  the  work 
of  tlie  demons  who  are  the  objects  of  worship.  The 
nature  of  this  pollution  is  quite  physically  conceived. 
If  an  animal  is  offered  to  a  heathen  god,  or,  according 
to  the  Jewish-Christian  method  of  expression,  offered 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  27 

to  an  idol,  then  the  demon  that  lurks  m  this  idol 
takes  possession  of  the  animal  and  fills  its  every  part. 
If  any  part  is  not  used  for  the  offering,  but  is  exposed 
for  sale  in  the  market,  it  is  still  infested  by  the  demon, 
and  what  is  demoniacal  in  it  passes  over  to  the  eater 
whether  he  is  aware  of  its  origin  or  not.  The  ancient 
ideas  of  both  heathenism  and  Judaism,  the  material 
conception  of  religious  operations,  meet  us  here  again 
upon  a  Christian  basis,  but  elevated  through  a  finer 
religious  and  moral  sensibility.  Paul  himself  indicates 
this  very  delicately  when  he  says  of  such  Christians 
(1  viii.  7):  "they  being  accustomed  until  now  to 
the  idol,  eat  as  of  a  thing  sacrificed  to  an  idol," 
that  is  to  say,  they  attribute  to  it  the  same  effects 
as  they  did  when  they  believed  on  the  idols ;  only 
now  these  effects  are  realised  by  them,  not  as  rich 
with  blessing,  but  as  instruments  of  curse. 

Not  so  Paul ;  he  was  moved  by  the  inspiring 
impression  that  the  prophets  were  right  when  they 
described  the  gods  of  the  heathen  as  vanities  (Elilim 
instead  of  Elohim).  Wherever  he  came  to  know 
heathendom  more  minutely,  the  fact  became  clear  to 
him.  It  was  certain  that  demoniacal  powers  bore 
sway  in  the  whole  of  heathendom — their  might  was 
only  too  easy  to  trace, —  but  demon  and  idol  are  not 
identical.  Meat  offered  to  idols  did  not  without 
more  ado  become  demoniacally  affected.  It  was  a 
general  truth  which  he  had  learned  from  his  Lord, 
and  had  not  brought  with  him  from  the  rabbinical 
school  in  Jerusalem,  that  religious  moral  operations 
must  not  be  conceived  in  an  external  and  mechanical 
fashion  ;  in  a  case  of  the  kind  everything  turned  on 
the  consciousness.     The  meat  offered  to  idols,  so  far 


28  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

as  the  market  was  concerned,  he  admitted  without 
hesitation.  From  this  it  followed  for  the  Christian 
who  received  an  invitation  from  a  heathen,  that  he 
might  and  should  eat  of  everything  set  before  him 
which  was  not  expressly  stated  to  partake  of  the 
character  of  meat  offered  to  idols.  The  same  reason- 
ing made  a  visit  to  a  banquet  in  the  temple 
impermissible,  for  there  the  religious  nature  of  the 
meal  was  clear  from  the  first.  He  sanctioned  social 
intercourse  in  the  private  houses  of  heathen,  yet  in  a 
tone  that  resembles  a  strong  dissuasion.  For  him  it 
was  always  a  matter  of  conscience,  and  in  characteristic 
fashion  he  pushed  the  conscience  of  others  into  the 
foreground  by  his  method  of  basing  everything  upon 
the  obligation  of  love.  I^ove  called  for  forbearance 
with  the  weaker  brethren ;  they  were  still  a  little 
afraid  of  meat  offered  to  idols.  If  such  a  one  sees  his 
Christian  brother  partake  of  it  without  harm,  either 
he  is  offended  and  the  brotherly  unity  is  disturbed, 
or,  still  worse,  he  joins  the  brother  without  the  same 
inward  justification,  and  acts  against  his  conscience. 
That  is  the  most  grievous  sin,  and  issues  in  death. 
For  non-Christians  also  the  Christian  is  obliged  to 
have  regard  ;  what  confusion  must  arise  in  a  heathen's 
mind  if  he  sees  a  Christian,  who  he  knows  abhors 
idolatry,  eating  of  meat  offered  to  idols.  Let  us 
suppose  that  a  heathen  has  invited  his  old  acquaint- 
ance, in  spite  of  the  inward  alienation  that  has  arisen 
between  them  since  the  conversion  of  the  latter.  He 
is  glad  his  friend  has  come.  The  idea  of  injuring  or 
provoking  him  is  far  from  his  thoughts.  He  con- 
siders it  his  duty,  however,  to  notify  him  that 
one    of   the   dishes    is    prohibited,    inasmuch    as    it 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH 


29 


consists  of  meat  offered  to  idols.  The  Christian  says, 
"  That  makes  no  difference,"  and  eats  of  it.  It  is  not 
the  fiesh  in  itself,  but  it  is  the  eating  or  the  abstaining 
with  its  plain  confession,  "  I  am  a  Christian,"  that  is 
the  important  point.  Here,  too,  as  Paul  emphasises 
very  strongly  at  the  close,  lies  the  great  danger  for 
the  Christian's  inner  life.  AVith  all  the  inward 
freedom  which  lifts  him  above  the  suspicions  that 
attach  to  the  eating  of  meat  offered  to  idols,  there  is 
the  danger  that,  through  a  false  connivance  in  respect 
of  heathendom,  he  may  himself  become  negligent  in 
his  Christianity  and  fall  back  to  the  heathen  spirit. 
This  is  the  reason  why  Paul,  in  spite  of  the  freedom 
of  his  standpoint  in  principle,  wishes  for  the  greatest 
possible  separation  from  heathen.  "  Be  not  unequally 
yoked  with  unbelievers"  (2  vi.  14  ff.).  His  desire 
was  to  keep  his  Church  like  a  chaste  virgin,  far  from 
contact  with  the  world's  seductions. 

This  it  was  which  kindled  his  zeal  against  the 
practice  of  goings  to  law  before  heathen  courts,  and 
not  any  utilitarian  consideration  such  as  induced 
Greek  societies  to  forbid  the  bringing  into  public 
of  matters  and  disputes  affecting  themselves.  It 
would  be  unfair  to  see  here  no  other  motive  at 
work  than  the  transference  to  the  Christian  Church 
of  Jewish  exclusiveness  and  independence.  That 
thought,  no  doubt,  was  not  absent  from  his  mind. 
He  sees  in  the  frequenting  of  pagan  tribunals  by 
believers  a  failure  to  recognise  the  greatness  of  the 
Christian  Church,  which  is  called  by  its  Lord  to  take 
part  in  the  judgment  of  the  woa-ld.  In  his  eyes  the 
practice  is  almost  a  denial  oi  the  Lord.  The  chief 
consideration  with  him,  however,  was  the  danger  with 


1 


30  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

which  this  contact  with  the  heathen  world  threatened 
]  the  Christian  community.  The  Christian  should  not 
I  go  to  law  at  all.  Paul  demands  of  his  Church  no 
more  and  no  less  than  the  surrender  of  individual 
right.  He  repeats  what  the  Lord  in  the  Sermon  on 
the  Mount  prescribed  to  His  disciples  as  love's  highest 
expression  :  better  to  endure  wrong  than  to  do  wrong  ; 
better  to  let  themselves  be  robbed  than  to  deprive 
another  of  anything.  This  was  the  level  up  to  which 
Christians  must  be  educated.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
too,  it  might  be  effected  if  they  came  before  the 
Christian  Church  with  their  disputes ;  mutual  con- 
cessions might  be  made  through  the  mediation  of  wise 
Christian  brethren,  and  the  highest  Christian  duty, 
brotherly  peacemaking,  involving  even  the  giving  up 
of  one's  supposed  rights,  might  be  inculcated.  Such 
a  course  could  not  be  expected  from  the  heathen 
judge.  On  the  contrary,  at  his  tribunal  the  heat  of 
the  quarrel  increased  passions  and  desires  still  more. 
Out  of  self-defence  there  grew  covetousness.  desire 
for  revenge,  hatred — and  whoever  hateth  his  brother 
is  a  murderer.  "  Know  ye  not  that  the  unrighteous 
shall  not  inherit  the  Kingdom  of  God." 
I  The  influence  of  paganism  made  itself  felt  even  in 
domestic  life.  And  no  wonder  :  the  young  Christian 
;  Church  was  just  about  to  lift  itself  out  of  the  world, 
and  could  not  possibly  have  already  regulated  all 
family  relations.  Here,  e.g.,  was  a  wife  converted  to 
Christianity.  Her  husband  was  far  from  the  new 
religion.  AA^hat  was  to  be  done  ?  It  was  a  case  that 
must  have  been  of  frequent  occurrence.  So  much 
we  gather  from  the  way  in  which  Paul  discusses  the 
question  of  mixed  marriages  (1   vii.   12-17).      There 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  31 

is  no  authoritative  saying  of  the  T^ord  to  settle  the 
question.  Jesus  was  not  a  teacher  of  casuistry.  He  / 
set  forth  broad  ethical  principles  as  self-evident  ' 
expressions  of  true  religion.  The  application  of  these 
principles  to  the  circumstances  of  particular  times  as 
well  as  the  conclusions  to  be  drawn  from  them  for  the 
totally  altered  conditions  of  the  new  mission  to  the 
heathen,  was  left  in  the  hands  of  the  Apostles.  It  was 
not  so  with  Judaism.  Such  questions  had  for  long 
been  matter  of  rabbinical  discussion,  and  the  funda- 
mental principle  was  laid  down  that  the  change  to  ' 
Judaism  did  away  with  all  former  relations.  The 
proselyte,  male  or  female  as  the  case  might  be,  was 
under  no  obligation  to  his  or  her  heathen  spouse,  and 
was  strictly  bound  to  enter  into  a  new  marriage  with  a 
Jew.  It  is  questionable  to  what  extent  these  theories 
were  only  pious  wishes  of  the  scribes  grounded  on 
the  fiction  that  Israel  was  lord  in  his  own  land,  with 
power  to  adjust  his  own  legal  relationships  even  with 
the  heathen.  Enough  that  the  theory  existed.  It 
is  conceivable  that  in  the  young  Christian  Church 
also  opinions  of  this  nature  were  expressed.  Many 
a  Christian  may  have  felt  uncertain  whether  his  or 
her  union  with  a  pagan  could  continue.  If  one  came 
to  live  in  the  belief  that  heathenism  was  impure  and 
polluting,  such  sentiments  were  unavoidable. 

It  is  equally  clear,  however,  that  those  Christians, 
who,  as  we  have  seen,  continued  to  maintain  their 
intercourse  with  pagan  acquaintances,  would  have 
found  no  difficulty  in  the  continuance  of  wedlock  with 
a  heatlien  spouse.  It  was  reserved  for  the  Apostle's  . 
liigher  Christian  insight  to  speak  the  decisive  word. 
Here,  too,  he  understands  how  to  enforce  the  highest 


32  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

principle.  Christianity  demands  that  on  the  occasion 
of  a  new  marriage  community  of  faith  shall  be 
required  (1  vii.  39),  but  the  existing  mixed  marriage 
is  of  no  doubtful  validity.  St^Paul  formulates  his 
view  in  sharp  antagonism  to  the  existing  Jewish- 
Christian  idea  of  the  polluting  power  of  paganism,  and 
maintains  that  there  is  a  sanctifying  power  resident 
in  Christianity.  Paul's  belief  in  the  superiority  of  the 
good  over  the  bad,  a  belief  especially  remarkable  in 
one  who  had  been  a  Pharisee,  enables  him  to  reverse 
the  relation.  Instead  of  timid  flight  from  what 
pollutes,  he  leads  a  victorious  attack  on  the  evil.  He 
finds  the  proof  of  his  position  in  the  holiness  of  the 
children  springing  from  such  a  mixed  marriage.  Not 
the  pagan  but  the  Christian  partner  regulates  the  ■ 
religious  status  of  these  children  :  they  are  holy.  ^^-^ 
Thus  the  decision  lies  with  the  heathen  spouse.  If 
he  or  she  is  content  with  the  Christianity  of  the  wife 
or  husband,  and  puts  no  obstacle  in  the  way,  then  the 
relation  may  remain.  The  mixed  marriage  becomes 
in  this  way  a  means  of  winning  the  souls  of  the 
heathen  for  the  Lord.  But  in  cases  where  the 
heathen  partner  will  not  tolerate  a  continuance  of  the 
marriage  under  the  new  conditions,  then  it  may  not  be 
forced  upon  him  or  her.  Neither  the  Christian 
principle  of  the  indissolubility  of  marriage,  nor  the 
missionary  sentiment,  can  in  such  a  case  be  regu- 
lative. The  point  here  is  the  spiritual  welfare  of 
the  Christian  partner,  and  his  or  her  outward  and  in- 
ward peace.  This  it  is  which  turns  the  scale  :  where 
such  well-being  can  be  preserved  only  by  separation, 
then  separation  must  be  had  recourse  to.  The  whole 
discussion  runs  on  the  lines  of  two  general  principles  : 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  33 

"  Christianity  willeth  peace,"  and  "  Christianity  does 
not  abohsh  existing  relations  ;  it  sanctifies  them  "  {cf. 
vii.  15,  17-24).  '   . 

Outward  relations  remained  the  same,  but  in- 
wardly everything  had  altered.  We  see  this  next  in 
the  case  of  slaves.  We  have  already  referred  to  the 
great  significance  which  attached  to  this  element  of 
society  in  Corinth  and  the  Christian  Church  there. 
How  was  it  now  with  the  slave  who  had  turned 
Christian  ? 

Atlhe  very  outset  his  joining  the  Church  depended, 
according  to  existing  law,  on  the  will  of  his  master. 
The  still  imperfect  organisation — there  was  hardly  as 
yet  a  regular  list  of  members,  far  less  a  formal  control 
of  them — probably  made  the  evasion  of  this  regulation 
possible.  As  a  rule,  however,  permission  was  given. 
The  custom  was  to  allow  slaves  the  free  observance 
of  their  inherited  religion,  so  far  as  it  did  not  interfere 
with  the  cult  which  the  house  followed.  In  opposi- 
tion moreover  to  Aristotle's  view  that  the  slaves  are  a 
lower  class  of  beings,  the  continual  and  vigorous  pro- 
clamation of  the  universal  rights  of  man,  slaves 
included,  by  the  Cynics,  and  especially  by  Stoics,  had 
probably  already  caused  some  alteration  in  the  general 
view.  We  may  presuppose  that  where  permission 
was  once  given,  no  hindrance  would  be  laid  in  the 
way  of  attendance  at  the  meetings — so  far  as  the 
arrangements  of  the  master  were  not  thereby  dis- 
turbed. In  other  words,  the  house  slave  proper  of  a 
heathen  master  had  less  freedom  in  this  regard  than 
slaves  employed  in  business  pursuits  or  in  trade. 
These  enjoyed  in  many  respects  an  extensive  inde- 
pendence, subject,  however,  always  to  the  goodwill  of 

3 


34  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

the  master ;    and  at  any  time  the   permission,    after 
being  given,  could  be  revoked. 

It  may  be  readily  believed  that  there  were  many 
slaves  who,  to  secure  freedom  for  the  exercise  of 
their  religion  as  well  as  to  avoid  many  moral 
dangers  that  threatened  them  in  the  place  which 
they  filled,  thought  of  acquiring  their  freedom.  That 
might  come  in  the  shape  of  a  gift  from  the  master  as 
the  reward  of  particularly  good  service,  or  for  special 
reasons,  such  as  the  death  of  a  master,  conspicuous 
honour  at  the  hands  of  the  state,  and  so  on.  Eman- 
cipation could  also  be  attained  by  ransom,  providing 
that  the  master  agreed.  In  this  case  the  Church  or 
individual  members  of  it  might  have  to  raise  the 
ransom,  because  the  private  means  which  the  law  of 
the  time  admitted  slaves  to  earn  was  not  always 
sufficient  for  that  purpose. 

It  may  have  been  due  to  this  in  the  first  place  that 
Paul  dissuaded  from  ransom,  even  where  it  was 
possible  (1  vii.  21),  as  his  principle  was  not  to  burden 
the  Church  unnecessarily  ;  but  there  was  also  a  higher 
moral  motive — the  maintenance  of  Christendom  in 
its  existing  social  relations  as  these  had  been 
appointed  by  God. 

The  moral  strength  of  the  new  Christian  spirit 
reveals  itself  in  the  fact  that  there  are  faithful, 
obedient,  and  conscientious  slaves.  The  aspiration 
after  emancipation  was  often  only  the  manifestation 
of  an  impulse  which,  though  excited  or  strengthened 
by  Christianity,  had  essentially  as  little  to  do  with  it 
as  the  social  rising  of  the  peasants  in  the  sixteenth 
century  had  to  do  with  Luther's  preaching  of 
Christian   freedom.      In   contrast  to   mere   external 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  35 

emancipation,   Paul  shows  how   Christ  has  brought 
the   slave   an    inward,    even   although   no    outward, 
deliverance.     The  idea  is  analogous  to  the  conclusion 
of  Epictetus,  himself  a  slave,  that  the  good  slave  is 
on  a  higher  moral  level  than  the  evil  master.     But 
the  thought  of  the  Apostle  has  an  additional  force — 
quite  another  practical  significance.     In  the  Christian  f 
Church  the  slave  can  really  feel  assured  of  his  per-' 
sonal  equality  of  rights,  which  is  also  his  guarantee . 
that  in  the  future  the  Lord  will  bestow  on  him  equal  { 
rights,  equal  glory  and  blessedness. 

Thus  slavery  lost  its  terror.  Paul  is  fond  of 
employing  it  as  a  picture  of  the  Christian  as  God's 
property  (Rom.  vi.  18,22).  "Ye  are  bought  with  a 
price"  (1  vi.  20,  vii.  23). 

In  the  case  of  a  Christian  master  the  relation 
assumed  a  different  form.  Nothing  is  said  of  the 
duty  of  setting  the  slave  free,  and  we  shall  see 
that  Paul  never  thought  of  demanding  it.  But  the 
freeman  is  brought  to  the  consciousness  that  he  is 
himself  a  slave  of  Christ,  and  so  is  answerable  to  a- 
higher  Master,  not  only  for  his  own  body  (vi.  19), 
but  also  for  the  souls  entrusted  to  him.  Nowhere 
in  the  epistles  is  there  any  mention  of  the  treatment 
of  heathen  slaves  by  Christian  masters.  We  have  an 
instructive  exemplification,  however,  of  the  position 
of  Christian  slaves  in  a  Christian  household  in  the 
case  of  Stephanas,  Fortunatus,  and  Achaicus.  I 
assume  that  the  two  latter  belonged  to  the  house- 
hold of  the  first-named,  to  the  family  in  the  Roman- 
legal  sense  of  the  word.  They  accompanied  their 
master  on  the  journey  to  Paul  at  Ephesus.  The 
master  of  the  house  is  named  first  certainly  (1  xvi.  15), 


36  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

but  the  two  others  are  mentioned  alongside ;  as 
Christian  brethren  they  were  all  equally  dear  to  the 
Apostle. 

A  similar  state  of  matters  existed  in  regard  to 
women.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  we  know  so  little 
about  their  status  in  the  public  life  of  the  closing 
period  of  antiquity. 

Rohde  is  right  in  maintaining  that  here  too,  for 
certain,  usage  differed  much  in  different  towns. 
From  motley  Corinth,  with  its  advanced  views,  we 
expect  less  strictness  than  is  attested  in  the  case  of 
the  old-fashioned  Athens  of  those  days.  Custom 
varied  also  with  the  different  ranks  of  society.  The 
strict  discipline  which  was  maintained  for  the  honour- 
'  able  matrons  and  daughters  of  the  upper  middle 
;  classes  was  as  little  in  force  among  Princesses  as  it 
was  feasible  for  the  women  of  the  working-classes. 
In  addition  to  this,  all  slaves  were  released  from  such 
control,  not  to  speak  at  all  of  those — mostly  also 
slaves — who  lived  in  dishonour.  If  the  respectable 
married  woman  was  forbidden  to  visit  the  theatre, 
if  she  went  to  the  heathen  temple  only  when  veiled  in 
Oriental  manner,  the  woman  of  loose  morals  was  found 
everywhere.  And  Corinth  was  full  of  prostitutes. 
The  temple  of  Aphrodite  on  the  fort  alone  possessed 
over  a  thousand  "hierodules,"  a  dedicatory  gift  to  the 
goddess  from  men  and  women,  as  Strabo  tells  us. 

We  cannot  discover  the  character  of  the  female 
element  in  the  Christian  Church.  It  is  certain  that 
many  honourable  women  of  better  standing  were 
Christians,  just  as  these  formed  no  small  portion  of 
the  proselytes  of  the  synagogue.  But  the  Christian 
community  could   not  have  entirely  lacked  persons 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  37 

who  before  their  conversion  followed  dishonourable 
pursuits  any  more  than  it  lacked  slaves.  The  gospel 
was  preached  to  sinners,  and  just  in  these  circles  did 
it  often  find  most  acceptance. 

This  consideration  shows  us  the  difficulty  which 
the  Church  had  to  face  in  the  female  question^ 
should  the  honourable  matron,  used  to  a  strict 
morality,  sit,  not  only  next  her  slave,  but  also  next 
a  former  prostitute  ?  Should  the  former  lay  aside 
the  veil,  which  she  was  accustomed  to  wear  outside 
the  house,  or  should  the  latter  assume  it  ?  Were  the 
freedom  and  equality  with  men,  which  were  conceded 
in  public  life  to  the  hetaira,  to  hold  good,  or  the 
chaste  seclusion  and  subjection  prescribed  by  usage 
for  the  honourable  wife  ?  The  gospel  recognised  the 
full  equality  of  man  and  woman  in  regard  to  religion, 
more  clearly  perhaps  than  was  the  case  in  the  pagan 
cults,  or  even  in  Judaism  itself  Did  not  the  claim 
of  women  to  equality  of  position  within  the  Church 
follow  ? 

As  usual,  the  freer  and  more  progressive  tendency 
gained  more  acceptance.  Among  the  Libertines, 
with  whom  we  shall  afterwards  become  more  fully 
acquainted,  emancipated  women  must  have  played 
an  important  part.  They  were  evidently  the  least 
trustworthy  element  in  the  Church,  the  soul  of  the 
opposition  against  the  Apostle  and  his  earnest 
discipline.  He  becomes  impassioned  whenever  he 
has  to  speak  of  their  "  emancipation,"  which  nothing 
could  bring  to  reason  (1  xi.  16,  xiv.  36  £).  The  first 
point  is  their  appearance  in  the  assembly  (1  xi.  2-16). 
Paul  insists  on  veiling,  at  least  as  soon  as  the  woman 
comes  forward  with  spoken  prayer  or  prophetic  address 


38  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

(4  f.).  He  produces  as  motives,  custom  (13),  the 
order  of  nature  (14  f.),  but  above  all,  the  relation  of 
woman  to  man,  as  fixed  by  the  creation,  which  gives 
the  woman  the  same  relation  to  the  man  as  he  bears 
to  Christ,  and  Christ  to  God.  This  involves  a  subjec- 
tion of  the  woman  to  the  man,  which  in  turn  demands 
an  external  sign,  "  because  of  the  angels,"  lest  they 
should  lust  after  the  woman,  who  belongs  to  her 
husband  alone  (10).  The  question,  however,  goes 
further.  Should  the  women  speak  at  all  in  the 
Church  (1  xiv.  34-38)  ?  Paul  determines  the  question 
by  an  appeal  to  usage  (35)  and  to  law  (34) ;  they 
are  to  remain  silent.  If  they  wish  to  learn  anything, 
they  are  to  ask  their  husbands  at  home.  Undoubtedly, 
with  this  strict  prohibition,  Paul  introduces  some- 
thing new  into  the  circumstances  of  Corinth,  a 
I  sharpening  of  discipline  which  its  deterioration  ne- 
cessitated. This  explains  why  at  first  he  tolerates 
the  open  prayer  and  prophecy  in  the  Church  by  the 
women,  and  then  forbids  all  speech  by  them  in  the 
congregation.  The  whole  question  seems  to  have 
y  been  a  specifically  Corinthian  one.  It  is  worthy  of 
remark  that  in  the  two  passages  quoted,  the  Apostle 
appeals  to  the  usage  of  the  rest  of  the  Churches 
(1  xi.  16,  xiv.  36).  In  places  where  stricter  custom 
on  the  whole  held  sway  in  regard  to  the  women, 
nothing  similar  to  these  Corinthian  disorders  appeared 
within  the  Christian  Church.  It  was  altogether 
something  new  to  the  Apostle,  which  he  learned 
only  by  degrees  how  to  overcome. 

However  pointedly  he  affirms  here  in  opposition 
to  a  false  emancipation,  not  only  the  steady  preserva- 
tion of  good  usage,  but  also  the  subjection   of  the 


THE    CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  39 

wife  to  the  man,  it  is  yet  characteristic  of  him,  as 
also  of  Christianity,  that  at  the  same  time  he  does 
not  forget  to  assert  the  rehgious  equahty  of  the  two  <r' 
sexes.  This  reveals  his  broad  and  liberal  spirit,  which, 
even  in  the  case  of  an  error  that  called  for  such 
strenuous  opposition,  allows  no  slackening  of  principle. 
It  also  shows  to  what  an  extent  this  tendency  to 
level  existing  distinctions — in  this  particular  case,  to 
raise  woman — prevailed  in  the  Church. 

When  Paul,  in  connection  with  the  story  of  crea- 
tion, lays  emphasis  on  the  fact  that  the  man  is  not  of 
the  woman,  but  the  woman  of  the  man,  and  that 
the  man  was  not  created  for  the  woman,  but  the 
woman  for  the  man  (1  xi.  8  f ),  he  adds,  improving 
what  he  has  said,  or  at  least  supplementing  it,  "  How- 
beit  neither  is  the  woman  without  the  man,  nor  the 
man  without  the  woman  in  the  Lord  ;  for  as  the 
woman  is  of  the  man,  so  is  the  man  also  by  the 
woman;  but  all  things  are  of  God"  (11  f).  The 
natural  order  already  typified  what  was  realised  in 
Christ.  Paul  designedly  emphasises  in  his  discussion 
of  marriage  (1  vii.)  the  complete  equality  of  the  two 
parties.  What  he  says  of  the  man  he  repeats  word 
for  word  of  the  woman  (2,  3,  12  f,  14,  32  fF.)  ;  three 
times  he  even  gives  the  wife  the  first  place  (4,  10  f, 
16).  And  he  indicates  that  it  is  Christianity  w^hich  | 
is  to  be  thanked  for  this  equality  when  he  calls  ' 
husband  and  wife  brother  and  sister  (15). 

In  sharp  contrast  to  the  libertine  craving  for  eman-   i^^c^oj^ 
cipation   on   the   part   of  single   individuals   are  the 
ascetic   tendencies   which    distinguish    others.      Not 
only  debauchery  is  prohibited,  but  all  sexual   inter- 


40  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

course,  even  within  the  sphere  of  legal  marriage. 
Surrender  of  full  marital  relations  is  demanded  of 
married  people,  further  marriage  on  the  part  of 
widows  is  interdicted,  while  the  single  are  not  to 
marry  at  all. 

To  understand  this  line  of  thought,  we  must 
clearly  realise  that  the  ancient  world  as  a  whole  saw 
something  supernatural,  something  demoniacal  in  the 
act  of  generation.  Sometimes  it  was  deified — as  in 
the  Phrygian  cults,  the  cult  of  the  Phoenician 
Astarte,  and  the  Aphrodite  cults  influenced  by  it ; 
sometimes  it  was  held  on  this  very  ground  to  be 
pollution.  The  idea  of  the  Mosaic  law  that  copula- 
tion causes  one  day's  levitical  pollution  was  widely 
spread  in  heathendom.  Alexander  Severus  in  such 
a  case  set  aside  his  morning  worship  in  the  Palace 
chapel.  We  shall  afterwards  see  what  a  strong 
ascetic  bent  obtained  at  this  time  throughout  the 
whole  world.  It  is  quite  conceivable  that  this  idea 
found  support  in  the  young  Christian  community  of 
this  city  of  excesses.  In  view  of  the  immorality 
dominant  in  heathendom,  and  the  ceremonial  foster- 
ing which  it  received,  every  earnest  moral  movement 
was  constrained  to  urge  the  other  extreme  of  perfect 
abstinence  within  as  well  as  without  the  marriage 
state,  the  renunciation  of  marital  relations,  and  a  vow 
of  chastity  on  the  part  of  the  single. 

These  subjects  had  become  familiar  to  the  Apostle 
in  the  form  of  questions  put  to  him  by  letter,  very 
likely  as  debated  points  upon  which  no  agreement 
could  be  come  to  in  the  community  ;  hence  there  was 
a  desire  to  hear  his  opinion.  In  his  treatment  of 
such  topics  Paul  furnishes  the  best  illustration  of  his 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  41 

method,  founded  on  principle,  and  at  the  same  time 
characterised  by  discipHnary  wisdom.  "  He  does  not 
leave  the  Church  in  any  doubt  as  to  what  his 
opniion  is."  "  Weighing  each  case  separately,  he 
endeavours  to  settle  what  was  attainable,  and  to  hold 
open  the  prospect  of  what  was  worth  striving  for" 
(Heinrici).  His  position  was  all  the  more  difficult,  as 
he  was  himself  not  free  from  ascetic  tendencies.  The 
demands  made  corresponded  with  his  innermost 
desires,  and  perhaps  the  advocates  of  this  view  were 
able  to  appeal  to  express  statements  of  his  own  in  this 
direction.  Yet  he  clearly  recognised  that  the  view 
did  not  agree  with  the  principles  of  Christianity.  He 
shows  himself  to  be  an  Apostle  of  Jesus  Christ  in 
subordinating  his  own  view,  his  own  ideal,  to  the 
Lord's  authority.  A  word  of  the  Lord  confirmed 
solemnly  the  indissolubility  of  the  marriage  tie. 
Paul  declares  this  as  absolutely  binding.  It  was  a 
simple  consequence  of  this,  when  in  the  regular 
marriage  he  demanded  the  consummation  of  the 
same.  Marriage  is  for  him  an  ordinance  of  God,  if 
only  for  the  prevention  of  licentious  satisfaction 
of  the  sexual  impulse.  To  release  oneself  from  this 
divine  ordinance,  there  was  required  a  special  gift  of 
God's  grace — continence.  Paul  takes  his  stand — we 
must  not  omit  to  observe — in  sharpest  opposition  to 
the  Encratism  of  a  later  period,  when  he  makes  any 
temporary  renunciation  of  the  marital  relation  for 
the  purpose  of  more  intense  devotion  dependent  on 
mutual  consent  and  limited  to  a  short  time.  He 
knows  too  well  the  danger  of  temptation  to  which 
later  ages  boldly  thought  they  could  bid  defiance, 
only  too  often  to  yield  to  it.     He  is  able  to  speak 


42  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

with  more  freedom  in  regard  to  the  unmarried,  be 
they  widows  or  single.  No  word  of  the  Lord  con- 
strained to  marriage  where  marriage  had  not  yet 
taken  place.  So  the  Apostle  can  say,  "  It  is  good  for 
them  if  they  abide  (single)  even  as  I "  (8).  Tlie 
father  who  is  firmly  determined  to  keep  his  own 
daughter  a  virgin,  does  well  (37).  The  widow  who 
does  not  marry  again  is  happier  (40).  But  he  never 
forgets  to  represent  this  only  as  his  view  ;  it  is  not 
binding  law :  the  widow  is  free  to  marry  again  whom 
she  will ;  only  let  her  marry  a  Christian  (39).  The 
father  who  believes  that  he  brings  a  disgrace  on  his 
daughter,  if  she  remains  permanently  unmarried,  is 
to  do  as  he  will.  He  commits  no  sin  if  he  causes  her 
to  be  married  (36).  Marriage  is  no  sin  (28).  Any- 
one who  cannot  maintain  his  chastity  does  better  to 
marry. 

However  much  Paul  prefers  celibacy,  however 
much  he  commends  it  on  the  ground  of  the  necessity 
of  unreserved  devotion  to  "  things  of  the  Lord  "  and 
the  nearness  of  the  Parousia  which  demands  the 
utmost  possible  separation  from  all  earthly  ties — this 
tone,  however,  is  not  nearly  so  strong  as  has  been 
often  maintained — yet  he  constantly  emphasises  that 
his  object  in  thus  writing  is  solely  the  welfare  of 
Christians,  that  he  has  no  wish  to  lay  any  snare  for 
them  (35),  and  that  he  speaks  of  celibacy  as  permitted, 
not  as  commanded  (6).  In  the  end  the  discussion 
always  comes  back  to  the  principle,  "As  the  Lord 
hath  apportioned  to  each  man,  as  God  hath  called 
each,  so  let  him  walk."  "Art  thou  bound  unto  a 
wife  ?  seek  not  to  be  loosed.  Art  thou  loosed  from 
a  wife,  seek  not  a  wife  "  (27). 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  43 

This  is  not  the  place  to  consider  in  detail  the  great 
significance  of  the  whole  discussion  for  the  Pauline 
ethic,  but  it  indicates  to  us  that  the  Apostle,  while 
considering  the  danger  of  unchastity  in  Corinth  a 
very  real  one,  did  not,  in  spite  of  all  his  leanings  to 
asceticism,  suffer  himself  to  be  deluded  by  encratite 
tendencies  in  the  Church.  He  had  in  truth  good 
cause  to  set  little  store  by  the  moral  strength  of  these 
Corinthian  Christians.  There  must  have  been  not  a 
few  of  them  to  whom  the  significance  of  the  seventh 
commandment  was  not  yet  clear. 

If  there  was  no  rending  of  Christianity  from  con-|] 
tact  with  the  surrounding  pagan  world,  neither  was 
heathenism  at  one  stroke  to    be  rooted  out  of  the* 
hearts  of  the  Christians.     We  shall  not  be  astonished  . 
if  the  Christians  of  Corinth  continue  to  be  moved  by  ' 
ordinary  human  lusts  and  passions,  nor  shall  we  even 
wonder  greatly  if  we  find  vice  among  them  in  the 
specially  aggravated  form  which  it  had  assumed  in  the 
pagan  world  of  the  time,  nay,  if  their  whole  method 
of  moral  judgment  was  still  in  many  cases  pagan. 

The  seventh  commandment  is,  "  Thou  shalt  not 
commit  adultery."  We  are  not  directly  concerned 
here  with  the  manner  in  which  the  Lord,  in  opposition 
to  the  externalism  that  then  held  sway,  brought 
this  commandment  into  relation  with  sinful  desire. 
"  Every  one  that  looketh  on  a  woman  to  lust  after 
her  hath  committed  adultery"  (Matt.  v.  27  f.). 
What  we  have  to  note  is  that  this  commandment, 
which  was  generally  restricted  to  marriage,  had 
already  received  a  wider  application  in  the  late  Jewish 
literature  through  the  prohibition  of  fornication  or 
sexual  relations  outside  the  marriage-bond. 


44  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

We  are  accustomed  (or  ought  to  be)  to  look  upon 
adultery  and  fornication  as  equally  sinful.  The 
Grecian  world  of  that  time  had  quite  another  view. 
The  respectable  wife  of  a  citizen  brought  up  in  strict 
seclusion  remained  shut  up  in  her  special  apartments 
almost  like  an  oriental,  and  in  her  case  adultery  hardly 
ever  occurred.  But  on  the  streets  hetaira?  were 
continually  moving  about  in  crowds,  and  they  practised 
unchastity  as  "  hierodules  "  in  the  service  of  a  heathen 
temple.  A  man's  intercourse  with  them,  whether  he 
was  married  or  unmarried,  was  hardly  reckoned  any 
offence  at  all.  In  addition  to  this  we  must  add  the 
specific  vice  of  that  age,  the  sodomy,  which  had 
eaten  its  way  so  far  into  human  thought  as  to  have 
found  philosophical  justification.  All  this  Christianity 
opposed  with  an  inexorable  "  Thou  shalt  not  commit 
adultery."  But  its  insistence  on  moral  purity  met 
among  the  Christians  of  Corinth  with  the  most 
vigorous  opposition. 

In  the  foreground  of  the  Corinthian  misconduct 
there  stands  a^£ecial  case.  A  Christian  has  entered 
the  marriage  relation  with  his  step-mother,  the  wife 
of  his  father,  who  is  evidently  dead.  Paul  condemns 
this  as  incest  of  the  worst  kind,  and  supports  his  view 
by  the  consideration  that  it  is  considered  such  even 
among  heathen.  As  a  matter  of  fact  both  Jewish 
and  Roman  law  forbade  the  marriage  of  a  son  with 
his  step-mother,  and  only  seldom  have  instances  of  it 
been  historically  attested.  Yet  one  case  would  not 
in  itself  signify  much  :  it  would  be  unjust  to  conclude 
as  to  the  moral  condition  of  the  Church  from  the 
aberration  of  a  single  individual.  The  occurrence, 
however,  assumes   the   greatest  significance   through 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  45 

the  attitude  which  the  coininuuity  adopted  to  it. 
The  Church  must  have  been  engaged  for  a  considerable 
time  in  deahng  with  this  scandal.  It  gave  rise  to  a 
lengthened  correspondence  with  the  Apostle,  of  which, 
however,  only  a  small  part  is  still  in  existence. 

In  the  first  place,  the  news  which  reached  the 
Apostle  while  he  abode  in  Ephesus  must  have  been 
to  some  extent  indefinite.  Under  the  impression 
that  the  moral  condition  of  Corinth  was  not  quite  in 
order,  he  had  let  them  have,  in  a  letter  now  lost,  an 
exhortation  in  general  terms  "to  have  no  company 
with  fornicators"  (1  v.  9,  cf.  2  vi.  14  fF.).  The 
Church  was  offended,  and  replied  by  asking  how  that 
was  possible  ?  If  all  contact  with  immoral  men  was 
to  be  avoided,  then  it  would  be  necessary  to  retire 
from  the  world  (10).  We  must  assume  that  this 
was  an  intentional  misunderstanding  of  the  Apostle's 
words. 

He  had  alluded  to  circumstances  within  the  Church ; 
they  behaved  as  if  e\'erything  was  right  there  and 
only  the  relation  to  the  world  outside  could  be 
thought  of.  Paul  desired  to  purge  the  community 
of  impure  elements :  the  community  assumed  the 
appearance  of  perfect  purity.  We  do  not  consider 
here  the  kind  of  tone  which  they  allowed  themselves 
to  adopt  towards  the  Apostle.  Everything  turns  on 
the  want  of  self-knowledge,  or,  as  we  might  better 
express  it,  the  conscious  palliation  of  a  serious  moral 
offence.  In  the  meantime  Paul  had  obtained  more 
accurate  information  concerning  the  case,  presumably 
through  the  Corinthians'  own  envoys,  Stephanas 
and  his  companions.  We  perceive  his  indignation 
deepened  twofold  by  the  tone  of  the  Corinthians  to 


46  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

personal  exasperation,  not  only  at  the  special  case, 
but  above  all  at  the  conduct  of  the  Church  in  the 
matter.  The  immediate  expulsion  from  the  Christian 
community  of  such  an  incestuous  person,  which  was 
a  matter  of  course  for  the  Apostle,  the  Church  had 
delayed,  and  had  not  taken  a  single  step  towards  it 
even  when  the  Apostle  in  his  former  epistle  had  at 
least  hinted  at  it.  Instead  of  meeting  the  offence  in 
heavy  sorrow  and  moral  indignation,  the  Church  was 
puffed  up  and  set  itself  in  opposition  to  the  Apostle. 

y  I  That  indeed  throws  a  very  suspicious  light  upon  the 
^  moral  judgment  and  sentiment  of  this  community. 
But  there  was  worse  to  come.  When  he  became 
aware  of  the  facts  the  Apostle  demanded  a  kind  of 
Divine  Judgment.  He  is  not  content  with  mere 
expulsion  from  the  Church,  but  requires  the  Church 
— in  spiritual  communion  with  himself  in  solemn 
assembly — in  name  and  in  the  power  of  Jesus 
Christ,  to  pronounce  the  curse  over  the  sinner  con- 
cerned. The  Apostle  expects  as  the  effect  of  this 
the  sudden  death  of  the  guilty  person,  with  which, 
however,  he  connects  the  hope  of  his  escape  from 
everlasting  perdition,  delivering  him  unto  Satan  for 
-  the  destruction  of  the  flesh  that  the  Spirit  may  be 
saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus  (5).  This  can 
only  be  understood  through  a  knowledge  of  contem- 

;  porary  ideas  of  the  curse  and  its  operation,  which 
were  in  essence  the  same  among  Jews  and  Greeks. 
From  the.se  ideas  the,  conception  .of  the  Apostle  is 
dis^tinguished  only  by  the  positive  .moral  element. 
The  temporal  destruction  of  the  sinner  is  for  him  not 
the  end  itself,  but  a  means  to  the  end.  The  end, 
moreover,    is    not    merely   the   preservation    of    the 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  47 

Church's  purity,  but  the  personal  salvation  in  a  higher 
sense  of  the  sinner  himself. 

What  attitude  now  does  the  community  adopt 
towards  the  offence  brought  thus  clearly  to  light 
and  to  the  very  definite  demand  which  the  Apostle 
makes  regarding  it  ? 

Paul  experiences  what  he  hardly  thought  possible, 
a  direct  refusal.  A^Hien  it  was  no  longer  possible  to 
deny  the  facts,  an  attempt  was  made  to  justify  them. 
We  have,  unfortunately,  but  very  imperfect  infor- 
mation about  this  stage  of  the  matter  and  what  fol- 
lowed. I  think  it  most  likely  that  it  was  as  follows. 
The  sharp  tone  which  the  Apostle  adopted  in  the 
epistle  conveyed  to  Corinth  by  Stephanas  only  pro- 
voked more  violent  opposition.  At  least,  the  people 
who  gave  the  Church  its  tone  would  not  hear  of 
consenting  to  his  request.  Of  this  humiliating  failure 
Paul  is  informed,  as  we  may  suppose,  by  Timothy, 
who  arrived  in  Corinth  soon  after  the  letter.  The 
Apostle's  whole  authority  was  at  stake.  He  resolved 
upon  a  decisive  course.  He  proceeded  by  sea  direct 
to  Corinth,  to  secure  order  by  his  own  personal 
appearance.  But  now  he  met  with  a  new  and  far 
more  bitter  disappointment.  In  consequence  of 
physical  weakness  he  was  unable  to  intervene  so 
impressively  as  the  occasion  required.  The  demand 
which  he  had  made  he  could  not  enforce.  Still 
the  Church  took  the  side  of  the  misdemeanant. 
As  suddenly  as  he  had  come  Paul  returned  to 
Ephesus,  deeply  shaken  inwardly.  But  now  came 
a  reversal.  What  his  advent  in  anger  had  failed  to 
do,  his  departure  in  grief  accomplished.  The  Church 
came  to  its  right  mind.     Loyalty  to  its  faithful  and 


48  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

fatherly  counsellor  again  won  the  upper  hand.     The 
majority  at  least  of  the  Church  decided,  late  enough 
indeed,  but  still  eventually,  to   agree   to  his  wishes. 
The   curse   was   pronounced.     It   is   true   the   penal 
miracle  did  not  appear.     The  curse  bound  up  of  neces- 
sity with  excommunication  had,  however,  manifestly 
an  effect  of  another  kind.     The  sinner  came  to  see  his 
guilt,  and  repented.     In  the  interval  Paul  had  sent 
Timothy  to  maintain  his  authority  in  Corinth,  and 
was  now  awaiting  his  return  restlessly  in  Macedonia, 
whither  he  had  gone  by  Troas  to  meet  him.     There 
he  heard  of  the  complete  revolution  which  had  taken 
place,   and   proceeded  immediately  to  adopt  a  new 
method  of  dealing  with  the  matter.     Instead  of  stern- 
ness he  lets  gentleness  have  sway,  and  proposes  that 
the  Church  should  receive  back  the  repentant  sinner. 
That,    indeed,   is   a  course   which  has  been  declared 
impossible,  and  on  that  account  it  has  been  sought  to 
connect  what  is  discussed  in  2  Cor.  ii.  and  vii.  with 
a  quite  different  occurrence   than   the   case  referred 
\    to  in  the  first  epistle —  a  personal  insult,  namely,  which 
,  the  Apostle  received  from  a  member  of  the  Church. 
There  is  here,  however,  a  misconception  of  essential 
points  in  the  view  which  antiquity  took  of  the  curse. 
The  prophets   of  the   old   covenant   never  weary  of 
affirming   that  God's  anger  will  turn  aside  and  His 
threats  stop  short  of  fulfilment  if  Israel  repents.     The 
case   of  Nineveh  in  particular  in  Jonah's   history  is 
designed  to  teach  that  repentance  and  turning  away 
from  sin  may  undo  the  effect  of  the  curse.     This  was 
also  the  view  of  the  Apostle  and  his  time.     Hence 
we   have   the   practical   consequence   that  the  with- 
holding  of    the    divine    judgment    amounted    to    a 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  49 

reinstatement  of  the  sinner  by  God.  As  the  result 
of  this  twofold  outcome,  the  manifested  repentance 
of  the  sinner  and  its  divine  acceptance  revealed  in 
the  non-fulfilment  of  the  curse,  there  was  nothing  left 
for  the  Church  to  do  but  to  concur  with  the  divine 
acknowledgment.  If  God  forgave,  so  must  the 
Apostle ;  and  the  Church  must  combine  readmission 
with  its  forgiveness.  Holding  this  view,  the  Apostle 
w^as  quite  justified  in  demanding  the  readmission  of 
the  sinner.  And  so,  in  a  better  way  than  he  himself 
had  thought  possible,  the  ultimate  aim  of  saving 
the  offender's  soul,  which  he  took  to  be  the  motive 
of  the  supernatural  punishment,  was  achieved. 

We  have  gone  with  considerable  detail  into  these 
cu'cumstances,  because  it  is  only  on  the  ground  of  all 
these  considerations  that  the  significance  of  the  one 
case  of  incest  for  our  question  can  be  made  clear. 
The  first  impression  is  very  unfavourable.  That  a 
thing  of  the  kind  could  occur  in  one  of  the  churches 
still  in  the  first  wave  of  inspiration  and  so  richly 
endowed  is  a  sad  fact  which  shows  a  lack  of  moral 
discipline.  It  may  be  said  by  way  of  extenuation 
that  perhaps  the  guilty  person,  stupefied  by  rabbinical 
theories  or  cynical  views,  was  not  aware  of  the 
incestuous  nature  of  marriage  with  a  step-mother. 
Still  the  community  cannot  evade  the  reproach  of 
inadequate  development  of  moral  judgment.  Worse 
still,  it  tolerated  the  incest,  even  excused  it,  and  in 
the  last  resort  sought  to  justify  it.  Is  this  not  a 
total  perversion  of  all  moral  notions  ?  If  the  Apostle 
was  right  in  affirming  that  the  height  of  moral 
depravity  is  reached  when  sin  is  not  only  committed, 
but  also  applauded  (Rom.  i.   32),  how  can  we  look 


50  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

upon  these  Christians  of  Corinth  as  anything  but 
the  most  reprobate  and  immoral  of  mankind  ?  For 
the  action  of  the  Corinthians  was  no  momentary 
aberration  and  confusion.  It  was  a  dehberate  atti- 
tude, maintained  for  weeks  in  strenuous  opposition 
to  the  Apostle.  It  would  be  a  waste  of  pains  to 
search  for  motives  connected  with  the  offender's 
social  standing  or  wealth.  That  would  only  make 
the  conduct  of  the  Church  more  contemptible.  It  is 
hardly  credible,  particularly  as  nothing  of  the  kind 
is  ever  mentioned,  that  apart  from  this  one  error  he 
was  a  specially  zealous  Christian  and  conspicuous 
minister  of  the  Spirit.  The  personality  of  the 
offender  is  quite  a  secondary  matter  ;  his  name  is 
not  once  mentioned,  Paul  employing  only  the 
reproachful  "such  a  one."  But  this  silence  makes 
the  Apostle's  personality  and  opposition  to  his 
authority  more  prominent.  We  must  beware  of  a 
too  hasty  judgment.  It  would  certainly  be  entirely 
wrong  to  represent  the  Corinthian  Christians  as 
fornicators  and  adulterers.  Had  they  been  so, 
Paul  would  not  have  taken  such  pains  with  them. 
He  would  simply  have  broken  off  all  connection  with 
them  and  withdrawn  his  few  true  followers  from 
their  midst.  His  continually-renewed  efforts  bear 
on  behalf  of  the  community  a  more  telling  testimony 
than  that  contained  in  the  appreciative  words  at  the 
beginning  of  the  first  epistle.  The  Apostle  must 
have  been  of  opinion  that  the  community's  defence 
of  a  case  of  gross  immorality  was  not  an  error  that 
deprived  it  of  its  Christian  character.  To  one  with 
his  strict  ideas  on  the  point  this  M'as  an  admission 
that  meant  much.     The  behaviour  of  the  Corinthians 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  51 

was  not  due  to  any  tendency  to  immorality  among 
them.  It  was,  so  to  speak,  a  purely  academic  thing. 
They  would  have  thrust  it  from  them  with  anger 
had  anyone  believed  that  they  were  actually  capable 
of  exemplifying  the  conduct  which  they  defended  in 
theory.  Cases  often  occur  even  in  our  own  day  of 
individuals  becoming  blindly  enthusiastic  in  behalf 
of  theories,  whose  application  to  themselves  or  their 
households  they  would  very  strongly  deprecate. 
Freedom  appeared  to  be  at  stake,  the  very  point] 
upon  which  the  greatest  fanaticism  and  intolerance 
are  developed.  Probably  the  purpose  was  to  fight 
for  the  Apostle's  original  views  against  his  own 
restrictions. 

The  "  All  things  are  lawful  unto  me  "  with  which 
Paul  opposed  Jewish  narrowness  had  become  a  catch- 
word, and  was  now  made  to  cover  gross  licentiousness. 
In  determined  constancy  to  the  view  which  they  had 
once  fought  for,  they  met  every  effort  on  the  part  of 
the  Apostle  with  that  uncontrollable  defiance  which 
the  feeling  of  power  so  easily  gives  where  thorough 
adequacy  of  judgment  fails.  For  it  is  just  the  half- 
mature  and  half-cultured  who  boldly  rebel  against  all 
usage  and  order,  trusting  blindly  in  their  own  power. 
This  will  demand  our  attention  later. 

Thus  much  is  certain.  The  community's  conduct 
reveals  a  grievous  want  of  moral  insight,  but  there  is 
no  reason  to  trace  it  to  immoral  principles.  [In 
speaking  of  community  we  must  not  overlook  the 
fact  that  only  a  section,  though  at  the  outset  the 
majority,  was  concerned,  and  that  the  leaders  are  to 
be  distinguished  from  those  who  simply  assented.]       ' 

This    defect    of    moral    insight     was    perhaps     a 


52  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

consequence  of  a  defect  in  the  Apostle's  first 
preaching.  At  first  (and  it  could  hardly  have  been 
otherwise  with  Apollos)  he  had  not  laid  any  great 
stress  on  the  moral  principles  of  Christianity.  What 
he  had  to  preach  was  the  Gospel,  the  glad  tidings  of 
the  kingdom  of  God,  of  Jesus  the  Crucified,  and  the 
salvation  which  became  available  for  man  as  the  con- 
sequence of  His  death  on  the  cross.  That  message 
burned  in  his  soul.  The  moral  aspect  was  for  him 
almost  a  matter  of  course.  We  must  not  forget  also 
that  to  these  Corinthians  Paul  was  not  only  an 
Apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,  but  also  a  born  Jew  among 
heathen.  They  and  he  had  grown  up  with  quite 
different  ideas.  He  brought  presuppositions  which 
they  entirely  lacked.  As  surely  as  he  was  shocked 
by  the  gulf  of  moral  depravity  into  which  he  gazed  in 
Corinth — the  description  of  the  moral  decay  of 
heathendom  (Rom.  i.  18,  32)  is  the  echo  of  his  intense 
abhorrence — so  surely  did  he  trust,  like  all  great 
preachers  of  faith,  that  the  power  of  the  Gospel  would 
produce  a  direct  moral  effect.  Thus  it  was  with 
Luther.  He  did  not  trouble  himself  about  the  moral 
or  immoral  consequences  that  could  be  drawn  from 
his  gospel  of  Christian  freedom  until  iconoclastic 
peasants  with  murder  and  fire  brought  home  to  him 
the  necessity  for  making  the  moral  inference  clear. 

The  want  of  clearness  in  the  moral  notions  of  the 
Church  is  indicated  in  the  Apostle's  remarks  in 
1  vi.  12,  20,  where  he  is  compelled  to  fight  expressly 
against  the  idea  which  represented  sexual  intercourse 
as  belonging  entirely  to  the  natural  sphere.  Naturalia 
non  sunt  turpia.  This  was  exactly  what  was  preached 
by  the  popular  philosophy  of  the  Cynics  and  of  the 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  53 

ancient  Stoics,  who  with  their  fanaticism  for  nature, 
contributed  to  the  dissohition  of  all  moral  distinctions. 
There  was  a  lapse  of  human  civilisation  to  the  animal 
standpoint  when  they  spoke  of  sexual  intercourse. 
Zeno  and  Chrysippus  did  not  shrink  from  representing 
incest  as  permissible.  Corinthian  Hellenism,  mis- 
shapen through  centuries  of  habit  and  altogether 
distorted  through  such  philosophy,  dominated  the 
Christians  of  Corinth.  Into  the  inward  freedom 
that  Christianity  brought  them,  they  must  first 
be  educated. 

Christianity  accomplished  this  task,  as  we  see  in 

Paul  liimself.     AVith  what  loving-  insistence  does  he 

.   .  . ""         .     '^  -  - 
discuss  the  moral  responsibility  which  attaches  to  men 

in  respect  of  chastity  of  the  body.     "  The  body  is  not 

for   fornication  but  for  the  I^ord,  and  the  Lord  for 

the  body  :  and  God  hath  both  raised  up  the  Lord  and 

will  also  raise  up  us  by  his  own  power."     The  body  is 

a  member  of  Christ ;  shall  it  be  given  to  a  harlot  ? 

Shall  the  spiritual  union  with  Christ  be  lost  through 

fleshly  union  with  such  an  one  ?     Fornication  is  the 

most  heinous  of  all  sins,  because  it  is  a  sin  against  a 

man's  own  body ;  and  the  body  is  a  temple  of  the 

Holy  Ghost  which  we  have  from  God,  through  which 

we  have  become  God's  well-won  property. 

It  is  wonderful  how  Paul  in  this  passage  makes 

everything  turn   upon   the   most  elevated    Christian 

ideas.       They    were    the    thoughts    in     which    the 

Corinthians,  as  we  saw,  mostly  lived,  and  constituted 

the   something   new   that    lifted   them    above   their 

former    environment :    Christ    the    I^ord    with    His 

almighty  power,  as  would  be  proved  in  the  awaking 

of  the  dead,  and  the   Holy   Ghost,  the  principle  of 


54  THE   PAULINE    CHURCHES 

freedom,  which  involves  the  obhgation  of  a  higher 
standard. 

Let  us  not  forget  either  that  Paul  established  this 
principle.  It  cost  him  much  pains,  many  a  hard  fight 
— the  motto  of  this  chapter  might  be  chosen  from 
Isaiah  xliii.  24.  But  the  final  adoption  of  his  view 
by  the  majority  was  a  victory  not  only  for  his  own 
personal  authority  but  also  for  the  cause  of  morality. 
It  was  the  triumph  of  painstaking  instruction. 

Let  us  try  to  determine  from  this  trend  of  thought 
the  actual  state  of  morality  in  the  Corinthian  Christian 
community.  The  method  of  thought  which  we  have 
found  characteristic  of  that  community  in  its  obstinacy 
as  well  as  in  its  conception  of  moral  questions  made 
much  immorality  possible.  But  from  its  possibility 
we  cannot  immediately  conclude  its  actual  existence. 
It  is  true  Paul  appears  to  take  for  granted  that  there 
are  among  the  Christians  all  sorts  of  immorality  and 
vice  when  he  proceeds  to  explain  the  statement  of  his 
first  epistle,  "  I  wrote  unto  you  not  to  keep  company 
if  any  man  that  is  named  a  brother,  i.e.,  a  Christian, 
be  a  fornicator,  or  covetous,  or  an  idolater,  or  a  reviler, 
or  a  drunkard,  or  an  extortioner  ;  with  such  a  one,  no, 
not  to  eat"  (1  v.  11).  But  this  enumeration  of 
heathen  vices,  to  a  certain  extent  stereotyped,  will 
not  prove  the  actual  occurrence  of  all  these  within 
the  Church :  it  was  one  case  with  which  Paul  was 
concerned.  Much  less  may  the  evidence  of  cases  of 
unnatural  unchastity  be  found  in  the  extended 
enumeration  of  vi.  9  f . ;  "  Be  not  deceived :  neither 
fornicators,  nor  idolaters,  nor  adulterers,  nor 
effeminate,  nor  abusers  of  themselves  with  men,  nor 
thieves,  nor  covetous,  nor  drunkards,  nor  revilers,  nor 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  55 

extortioners  shall  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God." 
Paul  expressly  adds,  "  Such  were  some  of  you — as 
heathen  ;  but  ye  were  washed,  but  ye  were  sanctified, 
but  ye  were  justified  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  and  in  the  Spirit  of  our  God  (again  the  two 
principles),  vi.  11.  He  warns  them  against  lapsing 
to  the  sub- Christian  level  and  tries  to  quicken  the 
Christian  conscience.  If  such  things  had  been  of  more 
frequent  occurrence,  and  Paul  knew  of  them,  he  would 
certainly  have  condemned  them  with  the  same 
severity  as  in  the  one  case  discussed,  and  demanded 
the  intervention  of  the  Church.  The  detailed  audi 
vigorous  treatment  of  this  special  case,  as  against  the 
few  and  merely  general  warnings  we  find  elsewhere, 
shows  that  other  concrete  cases  of  this  kind  could  not  '\ 
have  been  known  to  the  Apostle. 

It  would  be  just  as  precipitate  to  employ  these 
considerations  to  prove  that  as  a  matter  of  fact  the 
case  was  quite  unique.  I  do  not  go  the  length  of 
saying  that  it  would  be  unnatural  to  imagine  the 
Corinthian  Church  as  a  pure  spot  in  the  slough  of  im- 
morality which  the  town  itself  was.  But  we  must  be 
advised  to  caution.  Such  moral  depravity  as  seemed 
to  be  indicated  in  the  defence  of  its  incestuous 
member  cannot  have  prevailed  in  the  Church.  It 
was  better  than  it  made  itself  out  to  be. 


THE  PAULINE  CHURCHES. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Church  of  Corinth  {continued). 

The  question  of  Corinthian  notions  of  j^roperty 
seems  to  call  for  a  less  favourable  reply.  It  is  true 
Paul  has  not  so  much  to  say  on  this  point,  but  the 
method  in  which  he  handles  4t  reveals  that  he  is 
dealing  with  a  defect  of  much  greater  range.  The 
reason  why  it  did  not  come  to  be  a  question  of  first 
importance  was  that  it  had  not  the  same  close  con- 
nection with  the  hotly- contested  principle  of  freedom. 
At  the  outset  it  must  be  stated  that  private 
property  in  the  Christian  community  was  maintained 
intact.  Paul  had  not  the  slightest  idea  of  appearing 
as  the  representative  of  communistic  ideals  in  Corinth. 
Neither  do  thoughts  of  the  kind  seem  to  have 
occurred  to  the  community.  What  we  have  to 
observe  is  rather  the  opposite  extreme  of  blindness  to 
the  Christian  duty  of  love  which  ought  to  manifest 
itself  in  communicating  within  the  Christian  body, 
and  what  was  still  worse,  an  adherence  to  the  most 
doubtful  heathen  practices  in  business  affairs.  Paul 
expressly  mentions  the  covetous  and  robbers  along 
with  fornicators  as  absolutely  excluded  from  the 
kingdom  of  God  (1  vi.  10),  and  therefore  to  be  rigor- 
ously kept  outside  the  Church  (1  v.  10  f.).    That  this  is 

56 


THE   CHURCH   OF  CORINTH  57 

no  general  admonition  is  shown  by  the  law-suits  of 
the  Corinthian  Christians.  The  case  mentioned  in 
vi.  1  {rig)  of  a  man  bringing  a  suit  against  a  Christian 
brother  before  a  heathen  tribunal  was  not  an  isolated 
one.  We  have  already  discussed  the  view  to  be 
taken  of  this.  Here  we  are  concerned  with  the 
process  as  such,  the  dispute  as  to  mine  and  thine. 
Paul  tells  them  it  is  a  sinking  to  a  sub-Christian  level. 
Christianity  is  not  content  with  the  mere  forbidding 
of  everything  unlawful  in  the  practice  of  business. 
It  demands  more,  the  giving  up  of  one's  rights  where 
one  experiences  injustice  from  another,  especially 
among  brethren  of  the  faith. 

For  these  supreme  principles  of  Christian  ethic 
which  originated  wdth  the  I^ord  himself,  the  Cor- 
inthians, with  their  conspicuous  individualism  and 
their  insistence  on  the  rights  of  every  single  person, 
had  but  little  understanding. 

Few  of  them  had  quite  grasped  that  the  Christian 
of  means  has  a  duty  to  perform  to  the  community. 
We  see  an  illuminating  instance  in  Stephanas,  whom 
the  Apostle  praises  for  having  voluntarily  placed 
himself  and  his  household  at  the  service  of  the  Church 
(1  xvi.  15).  What  the  full  meaning  of  this  is  we 
cannot  apprehend.  One  service,  however,  lies  before 
us.  Stephanas,  by  commission  and  in  name  of  the 
Church,  has  journeyed  to  the  Apostle  with  Fortunatus 
and  Achaicus,  evidently  his  slaves  (17).  Naturally 
this  was  done  at  his  own  expense.  This  is  a  genuinely 
Greek  thing.  Athens  looked  to  her  rich  citizens  for 
XeiTovpyiai  or  scrviccs  on  behalf  of  the  state,  and  her 
societies  to  their  well-off  members  for  the  defrayal  of 
extraordinary  expenses.     The  reward  was  a  decree  of 


-^ 


58  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

honour.  It  is  also  a  decree  of  honour  which  Paul 
claims  here  for  Stephanas,  though  in  a  quite  different 
sense.  He  claims  from  the  Church  not  the  mere 
verbal  recognition,  but  the  practical  gratitude  of 
voluntary  subordination  to  those  who  have  willingly 
dedicated  themselves  to  her  service.  The  Church 
does  not  seem  to  have  showed  such  gratitude, 
and  it  is  doubtful  whether  the  Apostle's  desire  was 
gratified. 

How    little   the    Church    as    such    was    ready   to 

f  contribute  to  common  purposes  we  learn  from  the 
incident  of  the  collection.  This  collection  engaged 
attention  for  a  long  time.  Already  in  the  first 
lost  letter  of  the  Apostle  the  impulse  to  it  must 
have  been  given.  The  Corinthians  entered  cheerfully 
upon  the  proposal,  but  begged  for  further  instruction  as 
to  how  to  carry  it  out.  Paul  had  evidently  appealed 
to  their  honour — the  very  point  where  Greeks  were 
most  sensitive.  Perhaps  the  Corinthians  thought 
that  the  collection  was  meant  to  be  made  all  at  once. 
Then  the  rich  members  would  do  their  part  and  the 
honour  of  the  Church  would  be  saved.     What  Paul 

I  desired,  however,  was  a  general  participation.  So  he 
arranges — following    his    recommendation    to    other 

'  churches — that  every  Sunday  each  shall  lay  by 
something  for  this  purpose,  so  that  at  his  visit  the 

'  total  sum  may  not  have  to  be  got  together.  This 
shows  great  wisdom  on  the  part  of  the  Apostle.     He 

'  has  in  view  the  circumstances  of  the  majority  of  the 
members,  whose  scanty  earnings  did  not  admit  of 
large  outlays ;  in  small  instalments  something  might 
rather  be  asked  for. 

But  indeed  this   procedure  made  still  higher  de- 


THE   CHURCH   OF    CORINTH  59 

mands  on  the  individuars  energy.  Every  one  knows 
that  men  prefer  giving  a  larger  sum  once  than  keeping 
up  the  regular  payment  of  even  a  small  simi.  Had 
the  collection  been  levied  at  least  as  often  as  they 
came  together  for  their  Sunday  meeting,  success 
might  have  been  attained  earlier.  But  a  common 
fund  seems  to  have  been  wanting  as  well  as  a  person 
authorised  to  take  charge  of  it.  To  save  at  home 
for  such  a  purpose  was  quite  beyond  their  range  of 
thought.  However  much  the  goodwill  was  present, 
it  failed  in  practice.  How  was  the  individual  profited 
by  Paul's  promise  that  if  the  amount  was  respectable 
enough,  the  Corinthian  Church  should  be  represented 
in  the  deputation  which  would  accompany  him  to 
Jerusalem  ?  The  Corinthians  did  not  possess  so 
much  congregational  ambition. 

Paul  became  convinced  that  no  progress  could  be 
made  this  way.  After  his  short  visit  to  Corinth,  he 
sent  Titus  (2  ii.  13,  vii.  13,  viii.  6),  evidently  with  the 
idea  of  supplying  the  want  of  some  competent  person 
to  manage  the  common  funds.  This  step  appears  to 
have  been  of  some  practical  use,  although  it  gave 
occasion  for  base  suspicions  against  Paul  and  his 
representative  Titus.  Paul  considers  it  the  only 
method  of  bringing  the  matter  to  an  honourable 
conclusion,  and  therefore  sends  back  Titus,  who,  in 
the  meantime,  had  returned  (2  viii.  6,  17).  In  the 
epistle  which  the  Apostle  gave  him,  he  wisely 
appealed  to  the  honour  of  the  Corinthians.  The  zeal 
of  the  much  poorer  Macedonian  Churches  puts  them 
to  shame.  They  (the  Corinthians)  abound  in  every 
demonstration  of  the  Christian  spirit.  AVhy  is  it 
otherwise   in    regard    to    this    grace?       They   have 


60  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

experienced  the  love  of  Christ  (again  the  two 
motives).  Their  readiness  is  admitted.  But  they 
must  give  more  practical  proof  of  it.  The  matter 
must  have  engaged  the  Apostle's  attention  for  quite 
a  year ;  as  time  went  on  he  came  to  lay  more  and 
more  stress  upon  it  as  the  solemn  outcome  of  his 
mission  to  Greece.  This  makes  his  want  of  success 
in  Corinth  all  the  more  painful.  Hence  the  repetition 
and  detail.  Once  more  he  acknowledges  the  readi- 
ness and  zeal  of  the  Corinthians,  which  he  had 
lauded  to  the  Christians  of  Macedonia,  who  had  been 
stimulated  by  their  example.  Once  more  he  insists 
that  at  his  arrival  all  shall  be  in  order,  lest  he  and  the 
Corinthians  themselves  be  put  to  shame  when  the 
strangers  who  accompany  him  observe  that  the  real 
facts  in  the  Corinthian  community  do  not  warrant 
his  boast.  Once  more  he  emphasises  the  grace  of 
perfect  voluntariness,  but  also  the  need  for  cheer- 
fulness, pointing  out  that  liberal  giving  finds  also 
liberal  reward.  Everywhere  we  detect  the  enormous 
struggle  it  required  to  make  the  collection  a  feature 
of  the  Church  at  Corinth,  although,  according  to  all 
that  the  Apostle  says,  the  congregation  was  quite 
capable  of  undertaking  it.  Both  regard  for  the 
Apostle  and  the  Christian  feeling  of  community 
should  have  been  in  themselves  sufficient  to  ensure 
its  accomplishment. 

This  want  of  readiness  to  give,  or  sense  of  com- 
munity, is  also  to  be  found  in  the  inner  affiiirs  of  the 
Church.  It  finds  its  way  into  the  communion-meal, 
which  affiDrded  the  highest  manifestatfoiT'oF  brother- 
hood in  the  Church.  It  was  the  custom — presumably 
every  Sunday — for  the  community  to  come  together 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  61 

in  the  evenings  for  a  common  meal.  The  place  in 
all  likelihood  was  pnt  at  their  disposal  by  some  better- 
off  member  like  Gains.  Every  man  bronght  his  own 
portion — as  opposed  to  the  custom  of  the  Greek  guilds, 
where  the  cost  of  the  meal  was  defrayed  out  of  the 
guild's  treasury  or  by  individual  members — but  the 
idea  was  that  all  the  contributions  should  be  put 
together  and  then  equally  divided.  In  this  way  the 
Ijord  Himself,  to  whom  the  gifts  were  brought,  was 
made  to  appear  the  host  {KvpiaKov  Selirvou,  1  xi.  20). 
Prayer  and  edifying  addresses  would  consecrate  the 
meal.  In  reality  it  had  assumed  quite  another  shape. 
We  cannot  indeed  admit  that  Christians  neglected 
what  was  the  custom  even  among  heathens  and  Jews, 
the  consecration  of  the  meal  by  a  libation  or  a  prayer. 
But  the  characteristics  of  a  common  meal  were  want- 
ing. E^xryone  kept  what  he  brought  with  him  for 
himself,  without  caring  whether  the  others  were  all 
come  or  had  enough  to  satisfy  their  wants,  and 
began  upon  his  own  supply.  Thus  even  in  this 
common  meal  the  social  differences  which  were 
felt  within  the  Church  itself  were  painfully  acute. 
While  some  made  a  great  display  with  rich,  too  rich, 
banquets,  others  must  stand  by  with  empty  stomachs 
and  envious  glances.  Paul  considered  that  this  de- 
prived the  meal  of  its  essential  character.  In  reality, 
not  only  was  brotherhood  violated  and  the  equal 
standing  of  all  members  before  the  I^ord  lost  sight 
of,  but  the  behaviour  of  those  who  feasted  and  re- 
velled even  to  drunkenness — the  reproachful  "  one 
is  drunk,"  is  not  likely  to  be  an  exaggeration — pro- 
faned the  solemnity  of  the  Lord's  supper. 

There  may  have  been  many  who  attached  to  it  the 


62  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

character  of  a  joyous  banquet,  looking  more  to  the 
glorious  second  coming  of  the  Lord  than  to  the  com- 
memoration of  his  sacrificial  death.  Still,  there  was 
something  offensive  in  the  view,  and  Paul  combated 
it  vigorously.  He  sets  the  relation  of  this  meal  to 
the  death  of  the  Lord  in  a  clear  light,  and  enforces 
the  view  with  all  his  might.  He  groups  these  dis- 
orders in  connection  with  the  Lord's  Supper,  along 
with  the  case  of  incest,  as  the  worst  features  in  the 
circumstances  of  the  community.  To  such  irregu- 
larities he  traces  the  numerous  cases  of  sickness  and 
deaths  (xi.  30),  which  are  a  divine  punishment  for  the 
slighting  of  the  Lord,  involved  in  the  profanation  of 
the  supper.  At  this  stage  he  takes  the  first  step 
towards  raising  the  character  of  the  supper,  towards 
its  transformation  into  a  symbolic  act  of  worship,  in 
prescribing  that  extreme  physical  hunger  is  to  be 
appeased  beforehand  at  home.  Much  of  the  blame 
for  these  disorders  in  the  common  meal  must  be 
attributed  to  the  want  of  a  fixed  constitution,  a 
definite  organisation.  At  a  later  date,  when  all 
offerings  were  first  brought  to  the  bishop  to  be 
blessed  and  divided  by  him,  an  effective  preventive 
of  such  occurrences  was  discovered.  So  long  as 
the  Apostle  was  himself  in  Corinth,  it  was  natural 
that  he  should  himself  direct  affairs  ;  in  all  probability 
Apollos  also  enjoyed  a  natural  authority  of  this  kind 
in  the  community.  But  now,  when  it  was  deprived 
of  all  such  authorities,  and  left  to  itself,  the  community 
no  longer  knew  where  to  look  for  the  right  balance. 
The  truth  is,  this  too  was  moral  weakness  ;  the  Church 
should  now  have  organised  itself.  Individualism  was 
still  too  strong,  though  indeed  possessing  its  valuable 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  63 

correlative  in  religious  enthusiasm.  It  would  be 
possible  to  reproach  Paul  himself  with  having  left 
an  immature  Church  of  this  kind  without  the  support 
of  a  fixed  organisation.  Here  again,  however,  the 
Apostle's  greatness  is  revealed.  He  is  a  preacher 
of  the  Gospel ;  a  Church  organiser  only  in  cases  of 
necessity,  and  only  sparingly  obtruding  his  authority. 
We  saw  how  he  endeavoured  to  establish  the  authority 
of  Stephanas  in  the  community  as  one  of  the  first 
converts,  and  as  a  devoted  Christian  who  voluntarily 
dedicated  himself  to  the  community's  concerns.  That, 
however,  is  done  only  by  way  of  exhortation. 

In  regard  to  these  irregularities  in  the  Lord's  Supper 
St  Paul  speaks  with  the  greatest  firmness  :  "  The  rest 
will  I  set  in  order  when  I  come."  It  is  the  prelude 
of  the  apostolic  constitutions  of  the  later  period  (dia- 
taxeis),  and  without  doubt  the  Apostle  had  a  good 
claim  to  speak  thus  authoritatively.  He  possesses  a 
sort  of  fatherly  authority  over  the  Churches  which 
he  has  called  into  life  (1  iv.  14  f.).  But  like  a  wise 
pedagogue  he  spares  the  feelings  of  the  Church ;  in 
jest  he  threatens  them  like  bad  children — shall  I  come 
unto  you  with  a  rod?  (1  iv.  21) — but  in  earnest  he 
seeks  ever  to  prevail  on  them  by  loving  persuasion 
rather  than  by  asserting  his  authority.  Thus  he 
sharply  reproached  their  unbrotherliness,  but  almost 
more  effectively  he  continued  to  address  the  Cor- 
inthians as  "  brethren,"  and  warned  them  finally  not 
to  neglect  the  brotherly  kiss  (1  xvi.  20). 

There  are  other  defects  than  these,  also  intimately 
connected  with  Corinthian  peculiarities.  If  the  Cor- 
inthian drunkard  was  a  constant  figure  in  the  civic 
comedy,  Paul  will  be  in  dead  earnest  in  those  passages 


64  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

already  touched  upon,  where  he  names  also  the  evil 
speakers.  We  can  hardly  attach  to  these  the  import- 
ance of  merely  preventive  warnings,  when  we  see  that 
even  in  the  communion-meal  some  drank  to  excess, 
and  when  we  consider  the  shameless  tone  which  they 
allowed  themselves  to  adopt  towards  the  Apostle. 

These  observations  do  not  emerge  into  the  proper 
light  until  we  give  due  heed  to  the  deep  gulf  that 
extended  throughout  the  Church.  Everywhere  we 
come  upon  the  distinction  between  strong  and  weak, 
if  we  may  so  describe  the  two  tendencies,  following 
the  Apostle's  epithet  provoked  by  the  former  (1  viii. 
7  ff.).  We  could  also  employ  the  terms  emancipated, 
libertines,  freethinkers,  and,  as  opposed  to  them,  the 
narrow  party.  A  clear  perception  of  the  nature  and 
oriffin  of  these  two  tendencies  is  of  fundamental  im- 
portance  for  the  judgment  of  the  community's  moral 
standing. 

They  do  not  at  all  coincide,  as  has  been  maintained, 
with  the  two  elements,  out  of  which  the  Christian 
Church  was  formed,  heathens  and  Jews.  About  the 
numerical  relation  of  these  two  constituents  we  know 
nothing.  If  Paul  began  his  work  in  the  synagogue 
(Act  xviii.  4),  it  came  quickly  to  a  rupture  (6  f.). 

Probably  he  was  followed  into  the  neighbouring 
house  belonging  to  the  proselyte  Titius  Justus,  the 
head  of  the  synagogue,  by  Crispus  and  his  household, 
as  well  as  many  other  Jews,  e.g.,  Aquila  and  Priscilla, 
and  above  all  by  proselytes.  Yet  the  majority  of  the 
Church  must  have  been  composed  of  former  heathens. 
These  Jews  were  by  no  means  identical  with  the 
"  weak " :  the  breach  with  the  synagogue  and 
adherence   to    Paul   and   his   gentile-Christian   com- 


THE   CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  65 

munity  presuppose  a  great  degree  of  inward  strength 
and  freedom.  We  even  find  among  them  people 
who  were  so  disposed  to  break  with  their  Judaism  as 
to  be  ashamed  of  the  mark  of  circumcision  (1  vii.  18). 
On  the  other  hand  Paul  mentions  former  heathen  as 
"weak,"  when  he  speaks  (1  viii.  7)  of  their  "being 
with  conscience  of  the  idol  unto  this  hour." 

What,  then,  does  the  distinction  rest  upon  ?  On 
the  one  hand  we  find  liberty  viewed  as  the  essential 
of  Christianity,  as  the  new  principle  upon  which 
everything  turns  ;  on  the  other  hand,  sanctity.  Both 
to  be  sure  are  central  ideas  of  Christianity,  yet  they 
can  become  in  the  highest  degree  dangerous  through 
one-sided  emphasising  and  inistaken  interpretation. 

"  Am  I  not  free  ?  "  So  the  Apostle  begins  his  self- 
defence,  adopting  their  tone  (1  ix.  1-19).  "  All  things 
are  lawful  for  me  "  he  frequently  repeats  out  of  their 
mouth  (1  vi.  12,  x.  23).  Perhaps  these  were  words 
which  he  had  himself  used  in  his  preaching  at  Corinth. 
But  to  what  use  were  they  put  ?  They  were  now  to 
justify  intercourse  with  heathen  even  to  the  extent 
of  participating  in  their  sacrificial  banquets  in  the 
temple  (1  viii.  9  f.).  They  were  to  warrant  the 
abolition  of  all  distinctions  between  the  natural  and 
the  moral  in  sexual  intercourse  (1  vi.  12  £).  Under 
this  party  cry  there  was  pressed  forward  the  eman- 
cipation of  women,  and  all  morality  was  laughed  to 
scorn  (1  xi.  3  fF.).  When  actions  were  in  process, 
when  irregularities  occurred  in  the  Lord's  Supper,  "  all 
is  allowed  to  me."  The  joyful  confession  of  the  free 
gospel  was  turned  into  the  catchword  of  a  "  Liber- 
tinism "  tending  towards  lasciviousness. 

We  have  already  seen   that   here   and   there  this 


66  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

conduct  was  not  so  evil  in  intention ;  it  was  more  a 
theoretical  defence  of  the  unconditional  right  of  free- 
dom than  a  frivolity  that  wished  to  further  immorality. 
But  these  Christians  were  self-deceived.  Involun- 
tarily this  freedom  proclaimed  so  vigorously  as  the 
one  underlying  principle,  stimulated  to  a  licentious 
use  of  it.  Its  true  inner  nature  was  mistaken  ;  it 
was  sought  for  in  externalities  of  every  kind.  The 
slave,  instead  of  joying  in  the  freedom  which  Christ 
gave  him,  hankered  after  outward  liberty.  The 
Jew,  instead  of  gratefully  recognising  his  freedom 
from  the  constraint  of  law,  exerted  himself  to  secure 
release  from  circumcision :  others  sought  also  and 
found  the  freedom  only  in  things  which  were  un- 
becoming Christianity  and  morally  impermissible. 

In  view  of  later  phenomena,  the  connection  which 
this  insistence  on  liberty  established  with  rationalism 
is  worth  noting.  As  justification  for  the  misuse  of 
the  Christian  freedom,  there  was  adduced  enlightened 
knowledge  or  yvo)cn<i  (1  viii.  1).  The  nature  of  this 
rationalism  we  learn  from  the  discussion  of  the 
,  Resurrection,  which  is  denied  because  no  human 
conception  of  it  could  be  formed.  This  bare 
rationalism,  reminding  us  of  sophistic  scepticism,  with 
which,  however,  almost  magical  views  as  to  the  effect 
of  baptism  could  go  hand  in  hand,  was  also  regarded 
as  the  essence  of  the  Christian  doctrine  of  God.  It 
was  a  simple  matter  to  take  out  of  the  Gospel  the 
thought  that  there  is  but  one  God  ;  it  followed  that 
"an  idol  is  nothing  in  the  world"  (1  viii.  4).  There 
was  no  realisation  of  the  fact  that  there  is  much  be- 
tween heaven  and  earth  which  cannot  be  explained 
by   this   smooth   formula — there   be  gods  many  and 


THE   CHURCH   OF  CORINTH  67 

lords  many,  says  Paul  (1  viii.  5) ;  that  there  are 
invisible  powers  of  which  men  must  beware — Paul 
names  these,  after  the  notions  of  his  time,  demons, 
thouo^h  our  method  of  more  abstract  thought  would 
call  them  the  spirit  or  the  tendencies  of  heathendom  ; 
that  there  is  a  devil  who  makes  it  his  object  to  take 
advantage  of  the  saints  of  God  (1  v.  5,  2  ii.  11). 
And  so  with  this  rationalism  the  Corinthians  cast 
both  themselves  and  the  weak  brethren  whom  they 
treated  with  such  contempt  into  perdition. 

Paul     employed     a     twofold     argument     against  \ 
"hbertinism."     In  the  first  place  it  involves  a  danger  | 
for  the  strong  himself,  who,  intoxicated  by  "  liberty,"  ' 
becomes    careless  and  falls  under  the  sway  of  those  - 
dark  powers  of  heathenism.     "  I  would  not  that  ye 
should  have  communion  with  devils  "  (1  x.  20).     "  All 
things  are  lawful   for   me  ;    but  not  all   things   are 
expedient ;    all  things  are  laM^ful  for  me,  but  1  will 
not  be  brought  under  the  power  of  any"  (1  vi.   12). 
In  the  second  place  it  is  a  violation  of  brotherly  love 
towards   the   weak,   a   want  of  consideration    which 
burdens  the  strong  himself  and  at  the  same  time  brings 
gi'eat  danger  to  the  weak  through  the  temptation  to 
act  in  a  way  contrary  to  the  dictates  of  his  conscience. 

"  All  things  are  lawfid  for  me  ;  but  all  things  are 
not  expedient :  all  things  are  lawful  for  me  ;  but  all 
things  edify  not.  Let  no  man  seek  his  own,  but  each 
his  neighbour's  good"  (1  x.  23  f.).  "Knowledge 
puffeth  up,  but  charity  edifieth  "  (1  viii.  1).  The  con- 
clusion was  obvious  ;  the  weak  must  be  enlightened.  <, 
Let  it  be  the  duty  of  love  for  the  strong  to  raise  them 
to  their  own  high  level.  Paul  replies,  not  without 
irony :     "  For  if  any  man  see  thee  which  hast  know- 


68  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

ledge  sit  at  meat  in  the  idol's  temple,  shall  not  the 
conscience  of  him  which  is  weak  be  emboldened  to  eat 
those  things  which  are  offered  to  idols  ?  And  through 
thy  knowledge  shall  the  weak  brother  perish  for 
whom  Christ  died."  It  is  a  sin  against  the  brother,  a 
merciless  wounding  of  his  conscience,  and  at  the  same 
time  a  sin  against  Christ  (1  viii.   10-12). 

How  now  about  these  "  weak  "  ?  Did  they  really 
occupy,  as  was  supposed,  a  lower  level  of  Christianity  ? 
Could  they  be  helped  by  rationalism  ?  Their  weak- 
ness was  their  earnestness.  They  had  learned  from 
the  Gospel  that  here  there  was  something  new  given 
them,  something  quite  opposed  to  their  whole  former 
life  and  requiring  the  complete  renunciation  of  all 
that  was  in  any  way  connected  with  heathenism. 
Everywhere  they  feared  pollution,  not  only  through 
the  immorality  of  heathendom,  but  equally  through 
contact  with  demons  and  their  worship.  \¥e  have 
already  seen  that  this  agreed  with  a  widespread  view 
among  the  Jews,  we  may  almost  say  the  prevailing 
view.  Jewish  Christians  were,  therefore,  so  far  pre- 
disposed to  the  notion.  But  not  less  must  the 
earnest  heathen,  who  felt  an  aversion  to  the  heathenish 
immorality  and  worship,  have  come  to  adopt  such 
ways  of  thinking. 

We  know  only  too  well  the  length  to  which  these 
went.  That  fornication  was  forbidden,  and  that  a 
case  of  incest  like  this  raised  great  excitement,  follows 
as  a  matter  of  course.  Those  "  weak "  in  all  prob- 
ability came  afterwards  to  form  the  kernel  of  that 
majority  which  Paul  at  length  helped  to  victory. 
That  meat  offered  to  idols  was  disdained  was  a  plain 
consequence  of  the  Apostle's  utterances — the  "  weak  " 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  69 

of  Corinth  had  the  practice  of  the  whole  later  Church 
on  their  side  here.  But  apparently  exception  was 
taken — at  least  some  went  so  far — to  the  eating  of 
flesh  whicli  might  possibly  have  come  from  a  sacrifice 
to  idols.  From  that  it  was  only  one  step  fiu'ther  to 
the  total  renunciation  of  meat — not  out  of  Buddhistic 
Pythagorean  motives  nor  out  of  Jewish  scruples,  but 
out  of  this  fearfulness  and  dread  of  demons. 

But  when  Paul  says,  "  Therefore  if  meat  maketh 
my  brother  to  stumble,  I  will  eat  no  flesh  for  ever- 
more, that  I  make  not  my  brother  to  stumble " 
(1  viii.  13),  he  may  only  be  expressing  with  some 
exaggeration  the  unconditional  renunciation  of  all 
that  causes  the  brother  to  stumble,  without  justifying 
us  in  drawing  conclusions  of  the  above  kind  from  it. 

Further,  it  may  have  been  from  these  "  weak  "  that 
the  questions  touching  celibacy  emanated.  In  that 
case  the  disinclination  to  marriage  would  have  to  be 
regarded  as  a  similar  increase  of  the  abhorrence  of 
immorality.  Above  all  the  aversion  to  continuing  a 
mixed  marriage  was  in  keeping  with  the  abandon- 
ment of  all  that  was  heathen  (1  vii.  12  f).  Perhaps 
ideas  of  this  nature  found  expression  against  the 
glossolaly  which  recalled  much  that  was  pagan. 
When  Paul  establishes  the  significance  and  the  right 
of  these  manifestations  of  the  Spirit  among  Christians 
in  opposition  to  the  service  of  dumb  idols  (1  xii. 
2  f.),  when  he  closes  the  whole  discussion  with 
the  exhortation,  "  Wherefore  brethren,  covet  to 
prophesy  and  forbid  not  to  speak  with  tongues " 
(1  xiv.  39),  it  surely  presupposes  that  a  certain  feeling 
against  these  was  not  first  of  all  due  to  him,  but  was 
already  felt  by  some  of  them  in  intelligible  opposition 


70  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

to  the  over-valuation  of  these  amidst  the  Christian 
community.  It  is  not  by  any  means  impossible  that 
here  the  more  sober  view  is  connected  with  the  strict 
view  of  the  "  weak "  against  that  of  the  rationalists 
and  the  desire  for  wonderful  effects.  In  any  case 
the  contrast  between  "strong"  and  " weak "  was  tlie 
fundamental  one  for  the  Church  life  of  the  time. 

How  are  we  to  judge  it  ?  It  is  remarkable  enough 
to  see  the  Apostle  incline  now  more  to  one  side,  now 
more  to  the  other.  In  the  marriage  question  his  heart 
was  with  the  ascetically  inclined  ;  but  he  acknow- 
ledges the  rightness  and  conditional  obligation  of  the 
opposite  standpoint.  However  urgently  in  matters 
of  immorality  and  emancipation  he  opposes  the 
libertine  positions,  in  the  matter  of  the  meat  offered 
to  idols  he  gives  the  strong  the  principal  right,  only, 
however,  to  defend  the  claim  of  the  weak  to  for- 
bearance more  warmly,  and  at  last  to  reach  a  position 
totally  distinct  from  the  attitude  of  the  strong. 

It  is  no  uncertain  wavering,  no  indefinite  balancing 
of  opposite  standpoints ;  Paul  stands  above  parties. 
He  has  the  Gospel,  "my  Gospel"  (Rom.  ii.  16): 
they  have  each  only  a  fraction  of  it.  The  whole 
occurrence  shows  us  the  immaturity  of  this  Christian 
community.  Probably  not  without  some  thought  of 
this  great  contrast  the  Apostle  ends  by  finally  calling 
to  them,  "  Watch  ye,  stand  fast  in  the  faith,  quit  you 
like  men,  be  strong.  Let  all  your  things  be  done 
with  charity"  (1  xvi.   13  £). 

If  we  must  acknowledge  that  the  "  weak  "  were 
possessed  of  the  greater  moral  earnestness,  we  must 
also  admit  the  greater  moral  power  of  the  "  strong." 
The  earnestness  was  dissipated  in  unevangelical  fear- 


THE    CHURCH    OF   CORINTH  71 

fulness,  the  misguided  power  turned  into  unchristian 
hcentiousness.  Neither  dread  nor  defiance  could 
lead  to  the  goal,  but  only  liberty  hand-in-hand  with 
love. 

Up  till  now  we  have  intentionally  kept  back  one 
defect,  which  in  many  cases  has  been  regarded  as  of 
fundamental  importance — the  existence  of  parties  in 
the  Corinthian  Church.  It  is,  however,  only  one 
manifestation  among  others  of  the  defective  moral 
attitude  of  the  community  and  not  the  source  of  its 
shortcomings.  The  old  view  that  all  Paul  says  in 
the  first  epistle  must  be  referred  to  one  of  the  parties 
indicated  in  the  first  four  chapters  attaches  far  too 
much  importance  to  the  matter.  Paul  is  moved  to 
discuss  the  parties  first,  probably  by  the  proper  con- 
sideration that  the  important  demands  which  he  has 
to  bring  before  them  presently  cannot  make  their  due 
impression  until  the  Church  is  a  unity.  For  the  rest, 
however,  he  treats  the  matter  rather  as  stupid  childish- 
ness than  as  a  radical  defect.  The  fact  that  he  asserts 
the  highest  motives  is  only  in  keeping  with  his  in- 
variable method  of  dealing  with  things. 

The  impulse  to  these  disorders  was  unconsciously, 
given  by  Apollos,  an  Alexandrian  Jew,  who,  through 
his  eloquence  and  familiarity  with  the  Scripture,  had 
proved  himself  a  valiant  defender  of  the  Gospel 
against  the  Jews.  Thus  it  came  about  that  after  the 
Apostle's  departure  he  arrived  in  Corinth  with  a 
recommendation  from  Paul's  missionary  companions, 
and  carried  on  an  active  and  fruitful  ministry  in  the 
city.  There  was  no  material  difference  between  him 
and  Paul.  Paul  treats  him  as  an  entirely  like-minded 
fellow-worker,  not  only  placing  no  hindrance  in  the 


72  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

way  of  his  paying  a  second  visit  to  Corinth,  but  even 
advising  him  warmly  to  that  course  (1  xvi.  12). 

Only  in  form  was  there  any  difference,  because  the 
brilliant  rhetoric  of  the  Alexandrian  and  his  profound 
allegorical  interpretations  of  Scripture  soared  far 
above  the  simple  method  in  which  Paul  purposely  set 
forth  the  chief  points  of  the  Gospel.  A  polios  came 
quickly  to  find  a  circle  of  ardent  admirers.  But 
evidently  it  was  only  after  his  departure  that  the 
glorification  of  this  master  assumed  such  a  pronounced 
form  as  to  offend  another  section  of  the  Church. 
This  latter  party  maintained  that  it  was  Paul,  the 
founder  of  the  Church,  to  whom  the  greatest  debt 
of  thankful  respect  was  due.  As  usual,  contention 
sharpened  the  antithesis,  so  that  the  claims  and  the 
merits  of  the  opponent  were  denied.  "  I  hold  to 
Apollos,"  met  with  the  sharp  rejoinder,  "  I  hold  to 
Paul."  And  when  once  there  were  such  party  cries, 
it  is  not  astonishing  that  others  should  come  in,  and 
a  Jewish  Christian  party  rally  round  the  cry,  "  I  am 
of  Cephas  (Peter) "  (1  i.  12,  iii.  22).  On  this  matter 
they  may  have  come  to  very  great  differences.  But 
the  devotional  unity  of  the  Church  was  not  inter- 
rupted by  it.  Paul  writes  not  to  the  one  party,  but 
to  the  Church  of  God  in  Corinth.  He  does  not 
demand  the  adherence  of  all  to  the  one  party,  but 
the  giving  up  of  every  division  in  the  higher  unity 
of  the  Church ;  in  opposition  to  the  three  party- 
cries  originating  in  the  names  of  men,  he  sets  "  I 
hold  to  Christ,"  as  the  only  permissible  one.  The 
whole  discussion  is  filled  with  this  thought  of  the 
subordination  of  all  human  authority  to  the  only 
/  valid  authority,  that  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  which  itself 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  73 

rests  on  the  authority  of  God.  His  details  as  to  the 
proper  way  to  preach  the  Gospel,  the  distinction 
between  the  "  wisdom  "  and  the  simple  preaching,  and 
the  relation  between  his  work  and  that  of  Apollos,  ^ 
always  reach  a  climax  in  the  reference  to  Christ,  and 
beyond  Him  to  God. 

An  attempt  has  been  made  to  explain  these 
disputes  as  a  natural  expression  of  the  party-spirit  so 
characteristic  of  the  Greeks.  A  law  of  Solon  forbade 
impartiality.  It  was  the  form  which  the  passion  for 
debate  and  discussion  took  on  the  basis  of  the  new 
Christian  society.  This  is  certainly  correct.  But 
Paul  sees  something  different  in  it :  a  want  of 
Christian  consciousness,  to  some  extent  a  denial  of 
the  Lord.  And  that  is  in  very  deed  what  this  party- 
machinery  in  Corinth  chiefly  teaches  us.  These  I 
Christians  were  sadly — not  to  say  entirely — lacking 
in  a  clear  Church  consciousness.  The  individualistic 
trait  which  we  have  repeatedly  observed  assumes 
great  prominence  here. 

The  enjoyment  of  unrestrained  freedom  in  private 
life  was  insisted  upon.  In  the  Church,  too,  personal 
taste  and  individual  inclination  were  followed.  Behind 
the  glorification  of  the  authorities  there  was  in  the 
last  instance  personal  vanity,  the  elevating  of  them- 
selves above  all  authority,  as  Paul  very  clearly 
recognised  and  severely  reprehended. 

AVe  do  not  know  if  there  existed  a  closer  connection 
between  this  party  division  and  the  great  antithesis 
between  strong  and  weak,  already  referred  to.  It  is 
not  wide  of  the  mark  to  say  that  the  followers  of 
the  richly-endowed  Apollos  were  to  be  found  among 
the  libertines  proud  of  their  gnosis,  while  the  followers 


74  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

of  Paul,  with  his  tendency  to  asceticism,  were  to  be 
found  among  the  members  of  the  narrow  party.  But 
it  is  as  impossible  to  make  ApoUos  answerable  for 
the  bald  rationalism  of  every  freethinker  as  to  hold 
Paul  responsible  for  the  fearful  anxiety  of  their 
opponents,  not  to  speak  of  the  Cephas-party,  which 
cannot  be  suitably  accommodated  to  this  view.  It 
is  by  no  means  impossible  that  these  divisions  in  the 
Church's  life  crossed  each  other,  some  of  the  ApoUos- 
party  being  narrow,  some  of  the  Pauline  party  liberal, 
and  vice  versa.  One  thing,  however,  is  clear :  both 
defects  arise  from  one  root,  viz.,  the  confident,  self- 
sufficient  vanity  with  which  they  set  themselves 
above  all  higher  considerations. 

The  exaltation  of  self  is  most  noticeable  in  their 
conduct  towards  the  Apostle.  It  was  only  a  little 
thing  that  in  the  controversy  as  to  the  merits  of  their 
preaching  they  placed  Paul  and  Apollos  on  the  same 
level,  and  to  a  large  extent  decided  against  Paul. 
The  Apostle  explained,  "  With  me  it  is  a  very  small 
thing  that  I  should  be  judged  of  you  or  of  man's 
judgment."  But  the  arrogant  tone  which  they  had 
employed  he  lashes  sharply  in  the  bitterly  ironic 
sentences  :  "  Now  ye  are  full,  now  ye  are  rich ;  ye 
have  reigned  as  kings — without  us."  "  We  are  fools 
for  Christ's  sake,  but  ye  are  wise  in  Christ :  we  are 
weak,  but  ye  are  strong :  ye  are  honourable,  but  we 
are  despised"  (1  iv.  3,  8,  10).  We  have  already  met 
instances  of  this  in  their  intentional  misinterpreta- 
tion of  the  Apostle's  words,  in  order  to  upbraid  him 
in  quite  unbecoming  fashion :  "  What  you  desire 
is  impossible " ;  in  their  simple  refusal  of  the 
Apostle's    urgent    demand ;   and   in  their   venturing 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  75 

on  personal  defiance  of  him  wlien  he  appeared  in 
Corinth. 

The  opposition  which  had  grown  to  large  dimen- 
sions within  the  Church  was  combined  in  the  course 
of  time  with  a  new  and  foreign  element,  the  Judaistic 
agitation.  It  was  only  when  the  two  came  in  contact 
that  the  position  became  dangerous.  'J'here  may- 
have  been  some  few  such  Judaists  in  Corinth  at  the 
time  when  Paul  wrote  his  first  letter,  and  these  even 
as  Christians  may  have  retained  so  much  of  their 
Judaism  as  to  adhere  to  the  synagogue  instead  of  to 
the  Pauline  Church.  Paul  attempts  to  help  them 
with  brotherly  hand  over  this  barrier.  Only  in  the 
interval  between  the  two  letters  can  occasion  have 
been  given,  probably  through  reinforcements  from 
Jerusalem,  to  a  real  aggressive  agitation  directed 
against  the  Church.  Our  source  here  is  almost 
exclusively  the  second  epistle.  We  have  elsewhere 
to  speak  of  the  nature  of  this  Judaism.  Here  its 
interest  for  us  is  confined  to  the  influence  which  it 
exerted  on  the  Church  of  Corinth  and  its  relation  to 
the  Apostle. 

The  attack  was  aimed  directly  against  the  person- 
ality of  the  Apostle.  To  undermine  his  authority, 
his  cry  of  adherence  to  Christ  was  taken  out  of  his 
mouth  by  the  Judaists,  only  for  the  purpose  of  con- 
tradicting him  and  vindicating  themselves  in  a  more 
special  sense :  "  How  can  Paul  say  to  you,  '  I  hold 
to  Christ — viz.,  as  pupil  ? '  He  has  not  seen  the  Lord 
any  more  than  you.  Only  we  have  a  right  to  speak 
so  (2  X.  7),  for  we  are  His  immediate  disciples."  Thus 
the  Gospel  of  Paul  could  only  be  imperfect  and  in 
need    of  being  supplemented  still  more.     His   own 


76  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

moral  character  was  assailed.  The  collection  gave 
occasion  to  question  the  honesty  of  himself  and  his 
associates  (2  xii.  16-18).  The  fact  that  he  had  never 
accepted  any  support  from  the  Church  of  Corinth 
was  misrepresented  as  tending  to  the  support  of  this 
suspicion  (2  xii.  13-15) ;  here,  too,  a  sign  of  want  of 
love  was  sought.  His  imperious  nature  was  effectively 
pictured  to  the  Corinthians,  already  so  sensitive  to 
every  semblance  of  tutelage  (2  x.  9).  The  strongly- 
contrasted  weakness  which  he  shows  when  he 
appears  in  person  is  referred  to  (2  x.  10  f.).  He 
was  not  straightforward,  not  true ;  that  was  shown 
also  by  the  contradictions  in  his  announcements  and 
promises  (2  i.  13).  As  his  uprightness,  so  at  the 
last  even  his  moral  purity  was  questioned  (2  iv.  2). 
The  illness  which  they  had  seen  attack  him  on  his 
short  visit  to  them  came  to  be  looked  upon  as  a 
divine  punishment  (2  xii.  7).  The  revelations  boasted 
of,  the  vision  of  the  Lord  on  which  he  based  his 
claim  to  Apostleship  (1  ix.  1),  showed  that  he  was 
mad  (2  xi.  16,  xii.  11). 

It  was  a  systematic  attack  which  did  not  allow  any 
point  of  weakness  to  escape.  It  must  have  had 
success  too,  at  least  to  a  certain  extent.  When  Paul 
sets  himself  to  refute  in  detail  the  charges  raised 
against  him,  it  is  because  they  must  have  made  an 
impression  on  the  Church.  With  one  section  this 
was  certainly  the  case.  There  is  to  be  observed  here, 
as  so  often  in  life,  a  co-operation  of  entirely  opposite 
extremes ;  the  suspicions  to  which  the  Apostle  was 
exposed  from  the  zealous  Jews,  as  an  apostate  from 
Judaism,  found  willing  ears  among  those  libertines 
who  were  rebels  against  all  law  and  all  morality.      It 


THE   CHURCH   OF   CORINTH  77 

may  be  regarded  as  a  suspicious  indication  of  the 
immatureness  of  their  moral  judgment,  even  of  the 
immoral  tendency  of  many  members,  that  there  could 
be  any  talk  at  all  of  doubt  about  the  Apostle's  dis- 
interestedness, honesty,  and  purity.  At  any  rate  it 
shows  that  their  relation  to  the  Apostle  was  not  so 
respectful  as  it  ought  to  have  been.  Paul  feels  like 
a  father  towards  the  Church,  but  it  had  none  of  the 
child's  unquestioning  trust  of  his  father. 

Yet  here,  too,  there  must  be  no  one-sided  treatment. 
It  will  be  remembered  that  the  Church  continually 
appeals  to  the  Apostle's  knowledge.  The  letter  of 
the  Corinthians  which  replies  to  our  first  epistle  was 
no  private  communication  emanating  from  individuals 
or  a  group  of  individuals  :  it  came  from  the  Church, 
and  in  spite  of  the  unsuitableness  of  the  tone  it  adopts, 
there  is  nevertheless  something  naive  and  childlike 
revealed  in  their  asking  him  for  direction  upon  all  the 
disputed  points  in  the  Church.  All  the  sections — 
those  inclining  to  asceticism  as  well  as  the  libertines — 
are  at  one  in  that.  They  even  ask  Paul  himself  to 
use  his  influence  with  Apollos  to  get  him  to  come  to 
Corinth  again.  Notwithstanding  all  the  fanaticism 
for  Apollos  there  must  nevertheless  have  been  present 
an  almost  jealous  love  for  Paul  in  the  Church.  What 
else  could  be  the  meaning  of  the  enemy's  taking 
advantage  of  his  renunciation  of  pecuniary  support 
to  throw  suspicion  on  his  love  ?  But  at  last  this  love 
conquered.  After  grieving  him  sorely,  they  suddenly 
become  conscious  of  wrong.  In  the  second  epistle  of 
the  Apostle  there  sounds  through  all  apologies  the 
gentle  tone  of  a  reconciled  love  raised  above  all  doubt 
and  all  conflict.     The  visit  which  in  anger  he  refused 


78  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

to  make  (2  ii.  1)  he  was  able  to  make  in  joy  (Acts 
XX.  2  f.). 

We  shall  do  justice  to  this  attitude  towards  the 
Apostle,  with  its  wonderful  mixture  of  attraction  and 
repulsion,  only  when  we  reflect  how  young  and  im- 
mature the  community  still  was.  The  Apostle  tells 
them  plainly  that  they  are  still  mere  babes.  Yet 
how  mature,  how  grown  up  they  believed  themselves 
to  be,  like  a  boy  who  has  outgrown  the  clothes  of 
childhood,  and  in  the  proud  consciousness  of  man- 
hood is  no  longer  satisfied  to  endure  paternal  disci- 
pline. He  has  not  yet  learned  from  experience  that 
a  man  needs  some  authority.  He  feels  so  uncertain 
that  he  is  always  grasping  after  some  authority,  too 
often,  alas !  delusive. 

The  conduct  of  the  Corinthians  towards  the  Apostle, 
however  much  it  pained  him,  is  ultimately  only  a  sign 
of  moral  strength  yoked  with  immaturity. 

It  is  certainly  no  very  pleasing  picture  that  this 
Christian  community  presents  to  us.  It  is  well 
calculated  to  destroy  at  the  outset  all  illusions  about 
ideal  circumstances  in  the  apostolic  age.  Men  were 
then  just  what  they  are  now.  Christianity  had  to 
reckon  with  the  same  difficulties.  "  The  flesh  lusteth 
against  the  Spirit."  The  directness  with  which  the 
new  element  here  operated  while  it  strengthened  the 
impression  it  made,  liberated  undreamed-of  powers ; 
but  the  shortness  of  the  time  prevented  a  complete 
leavening  or  permeation  of  the  old  material.  The 
ancient  usages,  malpractices,  and  vices  of  the  heathen 
past  life  continued  to  make  themselves  painfully  felt. 
The  want  of  moral  discipline  is  in  pronounced  opposi- 
tion to  the  rich  spiritual  gifts  of  the  community. 


THE   CHURCH   OF  CORINTH  79 

One  of  the  characteristic  wants  of  the  Christians! 
of  Corinth   is  the  consciousness  of  being  members 
together   of    tlie    same    congregation.       United    for 
worship,  they  followed  for  the   rest   every  man   his 
own  way,  without  reflecting  that  the  Christian  cauj 
participate  in  all  the  blessings  of  the  new  faith  only ' 
as  a  member  of  the  Christian  community,  that  com- 
bination offered  the  best  defence  against  all  dangers 
coming    from    without,    and    that    accordingly   the 
individual  came  to  acquire  obligations  towards  the 
Church. 

-  Instead  of  this  they  took  their  stand  with  all 
insistence  on  the  principle  of  unrestricted  personal 
freedom.  Their  disregard  of  the  brethren,  their  want 
of  respect  for  the  Apostle,  are  only  consequences  of 
this  characteristic  individualism  and  independence. 
What  did  any  one  care  for  the  other  Christian 
Churches  to  whose  customs  Paul  repeatedly  appealed  ? 
(1  vii.  17,  xi.  16).  Why  should  they  give  money  for 
the  necessities  of  the  Christians  of  Palestine  ?  They 
were  sufficient  for  themselves,  and  would  neither  let 
themselves  be  directed  from  without  nor  themselves 
recognise  duties  to  the  outside  world.  The  attitude 
they  adopted  to  Christianity  was  not  very  different 
from  the  earlier  one  to  the  cults  of  Poseidon,  Isis, 
and  the  Mother  of  gods  ;  it  was  something  necessary 
to  life,  but  life  itself  was  not  defined  by  it. 

If  the  circumstances  of  Corinth  are  viewed  from 
this  standpoint,  then  all  the  errors  and  confusions 
are  quite  intelligible.  But  just  as  the  single  defects 
which  appeared  so  considerable  at  the  first  glance 
appeared  not  so  dangerous  on  a  closer  survey,  so  in 
the  finished  picture  they  become  still  less  prominent. 


80  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

How  much  honourable  striving  is  revealed  alongside 
of  licentiousness  even  if  we  only  think  of  the  "  weak  "  ! 
And  the  most  and  best  naturally  escape  our  notice. 
It  is  the  nature  of  the  good  not  to  shine.  Paul  did 
not  write  his  epistles  to  eulogise  the  virtues  of  his 
Churches  ;  only  necessity,  the  defects  that  he  knew  of, 
induced  him  to  write  at  all.  So  our  final  opinion  of 
the  moral  standing  of  the  Church  cannot  be  so  bad. 
There  were  at  any  rate  life  and  vigorous  effort  there. 
That  occasionally — or  perhaps  we  must  say  often — 
these  fell  out  of  the  right  way  is  an  indication  of 
excess  of  power.  The  Church  still  required  Christian 
education.     It  found  this  too.     When   we   consider 

.the  wild  motions  of  these  restless  spirits  in  the  days 
of  Paul,  we  cannot  but  think  that  the  weak  bonds  of 
the  Church  were  bound  to  be  rent,  that  it  was  bound 
to  disappear  again  from  the  earth,  broken  up  into  a 
number  of  smaller  circles,  and  decimated  through  the 
complete  retrogression  of  these  half-heathen.  Instead 
of  this  we  shall  again  find  the  Church  of  Corinth, 
after  about  forty  years,  shaken  it  is  true  by  hot 
conflicts,  but  nevertheless  in  such  a  position  that  its 
continuity  is  placed  beyond  doubt,  and  that  it  receives 
the    most    commendatory    testimony    for    practical 

•  evidence  of  Christianity.  In  it  was  fulfilled  the 
Apostle's  promise  (2  xiii.  11),  "Finally,  brethren, 
farewell ;  be  perfect ;  be  of  good  comfort ;  be  of  one 
mind  ;  live  in  peace  ;  and  the  God  of  love  and  peace 
shall  be  with  you." 


THE  PAULINE  CHURCHES. 

CHAPTER  V. 

The  Churches  of  Macedonia. 

thessalonica  and  philippi. 

In  the  summer  of  52,  before  coming  to  Corinth  Paul 
journeyed  through  Macedonia.  Landing  at  NeapoHs, 
he  proceeded  first  to  PhiHppi,  and  then  reached 
Thessalonica  by  way  of  Amphipohs  and  Apollonia, 
to  work  some  weeks  there.  He  fled  further  inland 
to  the  remote  Berea,  whence,  driven  to  a  hasty 
departure  through  renewed  persecutions,  he  reached 
Athens  by  sea,  and  afterwards  Corinth  (Acts  xvi.  11 
f ,  xvii.  1,  10,  15,  xviii.  1).  I  am  inclined  to  doubt 
the  ordinary  view  that  Paul  did  no  missionary  work 
in  Amphipolis  and  Apollonia.  Of  Berea  also  we 
learn  almost  nothing.  Neither  of  the  Epistles  to 
the  Thessalonians  mentions  it  at  all.  We  might 
easily  believe  that  the  foundation  of  a  permanent 
Church  was  not  laid  there,  were  it  not  that  Sopater, 
son  of  Pyrrhus  from  Berea,  appeared  among  the 
deputies  who  accompanied  Paul.  Certainly,  how- 
ever, among  the  Churches  of  Macedonia,  those  of 
the  two  towns  Thessalonica  and  Philippi  were  most 
prominent. 

Thessalonica,   rising   picturesquely  on  the    sloping 

81  6 


82  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

bank  of  the  Thermaic  Gulf,  was  the  capital  of 
the  provmce,  then  as  now  a  very  important  com- 
mercial centre  and  place  of  traffic  communicating 
with  Italy  by  the  Egnatian  road,  via  Dyrrachium. 
"  Lying  in  the  lap  of  the  kingdom  "  and  populous,  it 
was  not  far  behind  Corinth  in  importance.  The 
mixture  of  peoples  was  similar ;  among  them  Jews 
were  especially  numerous.  Living  seems  to  have 
been  dear:  Paul  and  his  companions  (1  Thess.  ii.  9) 
could  not  maintain  themselves  adequately  by  the 
labour  of  their  hands. 
y  Philippi,  now  a  deserted  ruin,  situated  about  three 
hours'  journey  inland,  in  the  well-watered,  fruitful 
hollow  between  Panga^us  and  Hgemus,  and  con- 
nected with  Thessalonica  by  the  Egnatian  road,  was 
of  considerable  extent.  Renowned  since  ancient 
times  for  the  gold  mines  that  lay  close  by,  the  scene 
in  42  B.C.  of  one  of  the  decisive  battles  in  the  civil 
wars,  it  was  built  anew  as  a  Roman  colony  under 
Augustus. 

As  inscriptions  show,  the  Latin  element  pre- 
dominated. The  few  Jews  and  proselytes  had  no 
synagogue  of  their  own.  Their  place  of  prayer  lay 
on  the  river  bank  before  the  town-gate. 

The  labours  of  Paul,  who  was  accompanied  by 
Silvanus  and  Timothy,  cannot  have  been  of  long 
continuance  at  either  place,  although  the  periods  given 
us  in  the  Acts  seem  to  be  rather  under-estimated: 
"certain  days"  (xvi.  12);  a  second  Sabbath  in 
Phihppi  (16) ;  three  Sabbaths  in  Thessalonica  (xvii. 
\  2).  In  Thessalonica  Paul  receives  monetary  help  at 
'least  twice  (Phil.  iv.  16).  This  lively  intercourse  was 
continued.    From  Athens  Paul  arranged  that  Timothy 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   MACEDONIA  83 

should  return  to  Thessalonica.  From  Corinth  he 
wrote  the  two  epistles  preserved  to  us.  These 
followed  quickly  upon  one  another,  Paul  having  learned 
first  from  Timothy,  and  then  through  other  channels, 
what  the  state  of  matters  in  the  young  Church  was. 
In  Corinth  he  received  from  Philippi  further  assist- 
ance, which  was  brought  to  him  by  Christians  of  the 
place  (2  Cor.  xi.  9) ;  Paul  could  say  that  with  that 
Church,  and  it  alone,  he  was  always  on  terms  of 
giving  and  getting  (Phil.  iv.  15).  His  last  visit  to 
Corinth — the  collection  journey — brought  him  in  the 
autumn  of  57  and  the  spring  of  58,  both  going  and 
coming,  through  Macedonia  (1  Cor.  xvi.  5,  2  Cor. 
i.  16),  2  Cor,  ii.  13,  vii.  5  =  Acts  xix.  21  f,  xx.  1  ; 
Acts  XX.  3.  Timothy  (1  Cor.  iv,  17,  xvi.  10),  and 
afterwards  Titus  (2  Cor.  ii.  13,  vii.  6,  13  f ,  viii.  17), 
had  previously  gone  the  same  way  in  connection  with 
the  saine  matter.  On  the  journey  to  Jerusalem  he 
was  accompanied  by  Sopater,  the  son  of  Pyrrhus,  as 
deputy  from  Berea,  and  by  Aristarchus  and  Secundus, 
as  deputies  from  Thessalonica.  The  representatives 
from  Philippi  are  included  in  the  "  we "  (Acts  xx. 
4  f).  It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  there  were  some 
Macedonians  who  belonged  to  the  permanent  retinue 
of  Paul,  Aristarchus,  Gains,  otherwise  unknown  to 
us  (Acts  xix,  29),  and  the  author  of  the  "  we " 
sections  (not  Luke),  Aristarchus  remained  with 
Paul  in  Cfesarea  (Col,  iv,  10,  Phm,  24),  and  ac- 
companied him  in  the  year  61  on  his  passage  to 
Rome  (Acts  xxvii.  2).  At  that  time  we  find 
Epaphroditus,  a  special  representative  of  the  Philip- 
pians,  with  the  imprisoned  Paul.  He  had  again 
brought  the  Apostle  support   (Phil.   iv.   10  fF.),  and 


84  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

because  through  sickness  he  could  no  longer  be  of 
service  to  the  Apostle,  he  took  our  epistle  with  him 
on  his  homeward  journey  (Phil.  ii.  25,  28) ;  soon 
afterwards  Timothy  proceeded  thither  on  the  Apostle's 
commission  (ii.  19).  In  case  of  discharge,  Paul  hoped 
to  visit  Philippi  himself  (i.  26,  ii.  24).  I  hardly  think 
this  actually  happened,  notwithstanding  the  mention 
in  1  Tim.  i.  3  of  another  visit,  which  cannot  be  made 
to  harmonise  with  the  sequence  of  events  known  to 
us. 

Out  of  this  extensive  intercourse  only  three  little 
letters  are  preserved  for  us.  Two  of  these,  addressed 
to  Thessalonica,  stand  at  the  beginning  of  Paul's 
correspondence ;  the  other,  written  to  Philippi,  con- 
stitutes, so  to  speak,  the  Apostle's  will.  An  interval 
of  ten  years  separates  them.  In  spite  of  this,  how- 
ever, we  are  entitled  to  treat  the  two  Churches 
together.  Paul  himself  speaks  (2  Cor.  viii.  1)  of  the 
"  Churches  of  Macedonia,"  and  (Rom.  xv.  26)  even 
of  "  Macedonia,"  as  if  his  little  Christian  Churches 
formed  the  Koinon,  or  diet  of  the  province.  Al- 
though Philippi  occupied  the  leading  place  in  his 
eyes,  as  w^e  learn  from  a  comparison  of  2  Cor.  xi.  9 
with  Phil.  iv.  15,  the  Macedonians  (2  Cor.  ix.  2,  4) 
are  certainly  not  to  be  confined  to  Philippi. 

The  Churches  must  really  have  had  much  in 
common.  Paul  speaks  of  their  great  poverty,  which 
is  united  with  great  joy  in  giving  (2  Cor.  viii.  2  fF.). 
Both  Churches  were  distinctly  Gentile.  The  total 
withdrawal  of  the  Jewish  element  will  cause  us 
less  astonishment  in  Philippi  than  in  Thessalonica. 
Lydia,  the  dealer  in  purples  from  Thyatira,  was  a 
proselyte.      But  her  family,  which,  along   with   the 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   MACEDONIA  85 

family  of  the  jailer,  formed  the  foundation  of  the 
Church,  would  show  no  trace  of  Jewish  character 
in  their  life.  The  other  names  which  we  hear, 
Epaphroditus.  Euodia,  Syntyche,  Clement  (Phil.  iv. 
2  f ),  bear  no  Jewish  stamp.  Jason,  Paul's  host  in 
Thessalonica,  may  have  been  a  Jew  (his  name  being 
a  hellenised  form  of  Joshua,  Jesus),  Acts  xvii.  5  ff., 
and  Aristarchus  certainly  was.  Col.  iv.  10  (Phm.  24). 
Demas,  who  has  been  connected  with  Thessalonica 
on  account  of  2  Tim.  iv.  10,  was  a  Gentile  (Col.  iv.  14 
and  Phm.  24),  as  was  also  Secundus  (Acts  xx.  4). 
The  Gentile  character  of  the  Church  is  indicated  still 
more  clearly  by  direct  and  unmistakable  statements 
of  the  Apostle  {cf.  1  Thess.  i.  9,  ii.  14).  These 
confirm  indirectly  the  report  in  Acts,  that  besides 
certain  Jews  a  great  many  God-fearing  people,  among 
them  especially  the  chief  women,  were  converted 
(xvii.  4).  The  adverse  and  hostile  attitude  of  the 
Jews  there,  who  pursued  the  Apostle  into  the 
neighbouring  town  of  Berea,  where  the  synagogue 
was  differently  disposed  (Acts  xvii.  5  fF.  13),  can  be 
detected  in  the  sharp  sallies  of  the  Apostle  against 
the  Jews  (1  Thess.  ii.  15  f.). 

Nowhere  does  Paul  employ  the  same  sharp  tone, 
except  in  Phil.  iii.  2  ff.,  where  he  speaks  of  his  un- 
believing countrymen,  who,  notwithstanding  his  love 
and  readiness  to  sacrifice  himself  for  them  (Rom. 
ix.  1  fF.)  constantly  caused  him  so  much  trouble 
(Rom.  XV.  31).  It  is  a  remarkable  conformity 
between  the  first  and  the  last  letter  of  the  Apostle, 
that  in  both  of  them,  instead  of  the  anti-Judaistic 
opposition,  it  is  anger  against  the  unbelieving  Jews 
that   breaks  through.     Certainly  that  is   not   to   be 


86  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

explained  by  saying  that  the  opposition  was  restricted 
to  certain  years.  It  was  a  permanent  thing — 
according  to  Phil.  i.  15  fF. — although  Paul  had 
learned  to  take  a  less  severe  view  of  it.  Rather  it 
was  the  circumstances  of  the  Macedonian  Churches 
themselves  which  induced  Paul  on  both  occasions  to 
turn  his  attention  to  the  unbelieving  and  persecuting 
Jews. 

This  fact,  however,  makes  a  comparative  treatment 

of  the  two  Churches  very  interesting,   for  here   we 

)  can  observe  the  effect  of  Christianity  under   similar 

I  conditions,    in   the  one    case   immediately   after   the 

foundation  of  the  Church,  and  in  the  other  after  ten 

years  of  trial. 

In  the  letters  to  the  Church  of  the  Thessalonians 
(1  i.  1,  2  i.  1)  the  immaturity  of  their  Christianity  is 
'  very  evident.  The  Apostle  lays  stress  on  the  fact 
that  their  faith  is  not  yet  complete  (1  iii.  10) ;  their 
love  must  increase  (iii.  12,  iv.  10),  and  their  Christian 
demeanour  improve  generally  (iv.  1).  He  employs 
\  the  tone  of  loving  advice  and  counsel  which  a  father 
adopts  towards  a  still  immature  son  (1  ii.  7,  11). 
The  Apostle  is  well  aware  that  his  affection  is  returned 
by  the  Thessalonians.  Timothy  had  convinced  him 
of  that  (iii.  6).  If  he  lays  stress  upon  his  dis- 
interestedness (ii.  5  ff.),  and  his  honest  intention  of 
coming  again  (ii.  17  ff.)'  ^is  defence  against  the 
suspicion  of  restless  and  impoverishing  charlatanry 
is  evidently  due  to  his  own  grief  at  the  premature 
cessation  of  his  work,  and  to  sorrow  for  the  conse- 
quences of  that  cessation  rather  than  to  the  general 
tone  of  Thessalonian  Christianity. 

Certainly  the  Apostle  warns  them  to  hold  fast  to 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   MACEDONIA  87 

the  traditions  which  they  have  been  taught  (2  ii.  15). 
But  the  danger  which  threatened  the  Christianity  of 
his  readers  was  not  a  denial  of  the  faith.  On  the 
contrary,  Paul  can  only  praise  their  constancy  in  the 
midst  of  much  tribulation.  At  the  outset  they 
received  his  preaching  in  the  midst  of  great  distress, 
and  yet  with  a  joy  that  was  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
(1  i.  6),  and  they  have  continued  loyal,  following 
the  example  of  the  Jewish  Christian  Churches  of 
Palestine  (ii.  14). 

Paul  was  well  aware  that  persecution  brings 
temptation,  and  that  there  was  always  a  danger  of  their 
being  shaken  in  faith.  This  he  feared  in  particular 
from  the  report  of  his  own  ceaseless  sufferings.  For 
that  very  reason  he  sent  Timothy  to  them  and  re- 
minded them  that  he  had  never  left  them  in  any  v 
doubt  as  to  this  result  of  Christianity,  and  especially 
of  Apostleship  (iii.  3  ff.).  In  Thessalonica,  too,  there 
were  faint  hearts  which  must  be  encouraged.  Yet 
on  the  ground  of  further  information,  Paul  can  boast 
to  other  Churches  of  the  patience  and  the  faith  of  the 
Thessalonians  (2  i.  4). 

Community  of  feeling  among  the  members  was! 
exceedingly  warm.  Paul's  insistence  that  his  letter  \ 
should  be  read  to  all  members  of  the  Church 
(1  V.  27)  is  no  proof  of  disputes.  It  is  the  first  time 
that  Paul  has  epistolary  communications  with  a 
Church ;  to  himself  it  is  something  unaccustomed, 
and  he  is  troubled  as  to  whether  his  message  will 
reach  all.  That  he  begs  them  to  give  effect  to  his 
greeting  in  a  mutual  kiss  of  brotherhood  (1  v.  26)  is, 
like  the  request  for  their  intercessions  (1  v.  25,  2  iii.  1), 
part  of  the  training,  which  endeavours  not  to  abolish 


88  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

defects  but  to  strengthen  good  habits.  There  must 
have  been  real  hfe  in  a  community  that  could  be  told 
to  "  Exhort  one  another  and  build  each  other  up, 
even  as  also  ye  do"  (1  v.  11).     Here  is  to  be  observed 

^  the  exercise  of  the  pastoral  duty  by  every  member  of 
^^the  Church,  just  as  Paul  claims  to  have  taken  fatherly 
"  concern  for  every  individual  (1  ii.  11).  As  was 
natural,  the  next  step  was  that  those  persons  whose 
gifts  and  circumstances  specially  fitted  them,  took 
over  this  duty  of  edifying  and  improving,  so  that  a 
kind  of  educational  staff  began  to  be  formed  within 
the  community.  The  exhortation  to  acknowledge 
these  voluntary  servants  of  the  community — the 
management  is  also  a  service,  and  often  a  right  hard 
one — with  particular  respect  and  loving  trust  (1  v.  12  f.) 
we  have  found  already  in  Corinthians  1  xvi.  15  f. 
We  come  upon  it  again  in  Phil.  ii.  29  f.  {cf.  Gal. 
vi.  6).  It  is  like  an  anticipation  of  the  conflicts 
which  were  to  arise  later  from  the  consolidation  of 
this  Church  management  in  ecclesiastical  officialdom, 
when  Paul  here  says,  "  Preserve  peace  with  them." 
Their  brotherly  love  within  their  own  congregation, 
as  well  as  towards  Christians  of  other  towns,  is  ex- 
ceedingly exemplary  (1  iv.  9  f.).  Paul  goes  into  no 
further  detail  on  this  point.  He  sees  that  in  this 
respect  they  have  been  taught  directly  of  God 
{i.e.  His  Spirit). 

Undoubtedly  this  great  brotherly  love  is  the  most 

/     genuine   expression   of    Christian   sentiment.     Their 
sorrowing    and    grieving    for    the   fate   of  departed 
;  brethren  is  particularly  characteristic  of  the   nature 
of    this    brotherhood,    this    feeling   of    close    inter- 
dependence.    The  value  of  this  sentiment  is  brought 


THE   CHURCHES    OF   MACEDONIA  89 

home  to  us  when  we  see  that  according  to  the 
contemporary  Jewish  apocalyptic  creed  "  those  who 
remain  are  far  more  blessed  than  those  who  have 
died  "  (4  Ezr.  xiii.  24),  and  that  Paul  himself  explains 
the  numerous  cases  of  death  in  Corinth  as  a  divine 
punishment  (1  Cor.  xi.  30).  Should  the  Lord  appear 
suddenly  to  establish  the  kingdom  of  God,  it  was 
really  a  burning  question  whether  those  who  did  not 
live  to  see  it  should  not  lose  thereby  the  blessed 
participation  in  the  kingdom  of  glory.  The  Church  \ 
waiting  the  Lord's  speedy  advent  had  not  reckoned 
on  the  possibility  of  cases  of  death.  These  deaths 
shook  the  whole  community,  which  would  not  give 
up  any  of  its  members.  How  differently  was  the 
question  of  the  resurrection  from  the  dead  dealt 
with  in  Corinth.  In  the  spirit  of  rationalism,  with 
no  feeling  of  community,  the  possibility  was  simply 
denied,  and  that,  too,  after  many  of  the  members  of 
the  Church  had  died.  Nowhere  more  clearly  than  in 
this  contradiction  is  there  revealed  the  conspicuous 
individualism,  the  religious  superficiality  of  the 
Corinthians.  There  the  Apostle  adopts  (1  Cor.  xv.) 
a  tone  of  reprehension  ;  here  he  takes  pains  to  comfort, 
and  he  does  it  by  pointing  to  the  difference  from 
"others  which  have  no  hope"  (1  iv.   13). 

The  remarkable  Christian  consciousness  of  the 
Thessalonians  shows  itself  also  in  the  special  questions  | 
of  ethics.  Paul  has  only  to  remind  the  Church  that 
their  adoption  of  Christianity  meant  an  abandoning 
of  idols,  and  turning  to  the  service  of  the  living  • 
God  (1  i.  9).  Complete  separation  from  everything 
pagan  in  their  way  of  life  was  consequently  a  matter 
of    course.     Paul     touches    specially    only    on    the 


90  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

specifically  Grecian  sin  of  fornication  and  the 
temptation  to  dishonesty  and  imposture,  which  was 
probably  a  serious  one  to  the  Thessalonians  engaged 
in  commerce  (1  iv.  3,  6),  and  in  both  cases  he  refers 
to  former  statements  of  his  own.  This  procedure 
shows  how  well  he  could  discover  the  weak  points, 
and  by  diligent  exhortation  effect  their  improvement. 
Again  we  must  observe  that  it  is  only  the  highest 
demand  of  Christian  ethics  that  Paul  finds  it  necessary 
to  impress  upon  them,  the  duty  of  renouncing  the 
avenging  of  suffered  wrongs. 

It  is  remarkable  that  Paul  here  looks  to  the  Church 
to  see  that  none  of  its  members  fall  short  in  this 
respect  (1  v.  15).  Only  the  feeling  of  communion 
gives  the  individual  the  strength  to  overcome  the 
selfish  desire  for  revenge. 

I  Otherwise  the  two  Epistles  are  throughout  brilliant 
witnesses  for  the  Church,  the  reality  of  its  faith,  the 
joy  of  its  love  which  fears  no  pains,  and  the  continu- 
ance of  its  patience,  1  i.  3  {cf.  iii.  6,  v.  8).  The 
Apostle  can  call  the  Thessalonians  an  ensample  to 
all  that  believe  in  Macedonia  and  Achaia  (1  i.  7), 
his  hope,  his  joy,  his  garland  of  pride  before  the  Lord 
when  He  comes  (ii.  19),  a  ground  of  never-ceasing 
thanksgiving  (iii.  9).  These  Epistles,  as  distinguished 
from  those  to  the  Corinthians,  are  marked  by  the 
special  prominence  of  the  general  and  genuine  re- 
cognition which  accompanies  every  special  exhortation 
with  an  "as  ye  now  do." 

Only  one  point  is  lacking  in  this  otherwise  ideal 
picture.  We  are  reminded  that  we  are  standing  on 
the  rude  basis  of  actuality.  It  is  a  symptom  specially 
characteristic  of  youthful  immature  Christianity. 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   MACEDONIA  91 

We  have  already  seen  what  a  large  part  speculation 
as  to  the  fiitin-e  played.  To  some  extent  this  must 
have  been  occasioned  by  the  nature  of  the  preaching 
of  Paul,  who,  apart  from  the  express  discussion  of  the 
Parousia  (1  iv.  13  ff.,  v.  1  fF.,  2  ii.  1  ff.),  refers  to  it 
three  times  in  the  first  short  letter  (1  ii.  19,  iii.  13, 
V.  23).  On  the  other  hand,  it  was  probably  affected 
by  the  social  condition  of  the  Christians  of  Corinth,  , 
who  sighed  for  freedom  from  the  load  that  burdened  ' 
them.  The  harassing  poverty  which  Paul  (2  Cor. 
viii.  2)  bears  witness  to  probably  caused  him  to  avoid 
being  a  burden  in  any  way  in  Thessalonica  (1  ii.  6  f , 
2  iii.  8).  If  the  first  factor  in  the  Christianity  of  the 
Thessalonians  was  the  service  of  the  living  God,  then/ 
the  next  was  the  expectation  of  thereturn  of  the  exalted 
Lord  (1  i.  9  f.).  The  intensity  of  this  expectation  \ 
was  due  to  the  Apostle's  preaching ;  every  moment, 
it  was  believed,  they  should  be  looking  for  His  coming : 
He  would  come  like  a  thief  in  the  night.  In  remind- 
ing them  of  this,  and  exhorting  them  to  watchfulness 
(1  V.  1  fF.),  Paul  poured  oil  on  the  fire.  In  the  second 
Epistle  he  is  compelled  to  defend  himself  against 
misunderstandings ;  he  can  explain  his  position  only 
by  falsification  of  his  own  words  (2  ii.  2,  cf.  iii.  17), 
and  by  producing  from  the  armoury  of  Jewish  escha- 
tology  those  lines  of  thought,  which,  without  putting 
aside  the  speedy  coming  of  the  Parousia,  point  to 
certain  precursors  of  the  same,  apostasy,  Antichrist, 
and  so  forth. 

Here  we  have  to  deal  only  with  the  moral  conse-  1 
quences  of  this  over-strained   Parousia  expectation.  | 
It  was  the  cause  of  a  restless  and  unwholesome  con- 
dition among  the  Christians,  which  resulted  in  a  dis-  v. 


92  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

ordered  life.     Many  deserted  their  work  in  expectation 
of  the  coming  end ;  why  should  they  trouble  them- 
selves uselessly  ?     The  genuine  Greek  contempt  for 
the  labourer  {/Sdmva-o?),  the  opinion  that  work  is  only 
a  thing  for  the  necessitous,  and  not  in  itself  honourable, 
lent  its  aid.     In  most  of  the  towns  the  free  citizen  of 
the  poorer  class  preferred  the  miserable  living  which 
the  state  gave  him  to  earning  his  bread  with  his  own 
hands.     Above  all,  however,  the  pressure  of  outward 
circumstances  seemed  to  have  become  intolerable  at  the 
very  moment  when  the  prospect  of  freedom  appeared. 
The  consequence  was  that  the  people  fell  completely 
into  necessity,  and  became  a  burden   to   the   other 
members  of  the  Church,  at  the  same  time  bringing 
Christianity  into  an  entirely  ftilse  light  among  those 
without  the  Church.     For  their  idleness  was  combined 
\    with  a  great  outward  officiousness  ;  the  imminence  of 
;  1   the  Parousia  intensified  the  zeal  for  conversion.     They 
interfered   in   public    affairs   which    did  not  concern 
Christianity,  and  again  excited  public  feeling  against 
:  the  Church.     At  the  outset  Paul  had  probably  not 
i   had  in  view  the  seriousness  and  extent  of  this  state 
i    of  affairs  ;  in  the  interval  both  had  perhaps  developed. 
1    In  the  first  epistle  he  exhorts  them  to  tranquillity  and 
retirement  (rjorvx^dt^eiv),  and  special  regard  for  the  judg- 
y  ment  of  the  outside  world  (iv.  10  fJ'.) ;  he  lays  stress 
j  on  watchfulness  and  sobriety  (v.  6-8).     But  with  an 
"  Admonish  the  disorderly,"  he  dismisses  the  whole 
affair  (v.  14) ;  he  is  so  cautious  that,  avoiding  all  one- 
sidedness,   he  immediately  speaks  on  behalf  of  the 
enthusiastic    element,    and   says,    "  Quench    not    the 
Spirit;  despise  not  prophesyings "  (v.   19  f).     Quite 
different  is  his  procedure  in  the  second  epistle  :  he  de- 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   MACEDONIA  93 

mands  from  every  man  not  only  quietness,  but  work 
to  maintain  himself.  Here,  for  the  first  time,  clear 
expression  was  given  to  the  moral  value  of  labour, 
as  surpassing  the  old  Jewish  view  of  Gen.  iii.  17  fF. 
Any  one  who  resists  is  threatened  with  temporary 
exclusion  from  the  Church,  though  in  the  hope  of 
improvement  (2  iii.  6,  14  f.) ;  not  a  harsh  rejection, 
but  brotherly  admonition  is  to  bring  about  the 
offender's  reinstatement  (15).  Here,  too,  the  highest  \ 
aim  is  the  peace  of  the  community  (16). 

This  occurrence,  in  itself  so  interesting  as  a  patho- 1 
logical  symptom  in  the  enthusiasm  of  those  early! 
days,  is  the  more  significant  in  view  of  its  frequent 
repetition  in  the  course  of  Church  history.  Social 
oppression  and  strained  expectation  of  the  end  always 
work  hand-in-hand  to  drive  whole  crowds  from  house 
and  home  to  an  aimless  vagrancy.  As  in  Thessalonica, 
the  desertion  of  work  always  meets  us  as  the  chief 
feature.  On  the  other  hand,  Paul's  word  to  the 
Thessalonians,  "  If  any  would  not  work,  neither 
should  he  eat,"  has  proved  its  educational  value  in 
the  history  of  Christian  monasticism. 

Some  ten  years  later  Paul  addresses  a  letter  from  [ 
his  prison  in  Rome  to  the  Church  of  Philippi.  It  is, 
so  to  speak,  his  last  greeting,  far  less  a  letter  of  ex- 
hortation to  the  Philippians  than  a  pouring  out  of 
his  heart  to  the  Church  which  lay  nearest  it.  There 
does  not  lack  concrete  detail ;  Paul  had  just  received 
news  of  Philippi  through  Epaphroditus.  But  the 
Church  is  hardly  mentioned — a  fact  which  is  certainly 
to  be  regarded  as  excellent  general  testimony  on  its 
behalf. 

Naturally  the  Apostle  speaks  here  also  of  the  need 


94  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

for  perfection ;  He  who  began  a  good  work  in  the 
Phihppians  will  also  perfect  it ;  their  love  will  abound 
yet  more  and  more  (i.  6,  9).  But  the  Apostle  himself, 
so  near  his  end,  confesses  even  of  himself,  "  Not  as 
though  I  had  already  attained,  either  were  already 
perfect"  (iii.  12.)  In  general  he  treats  the  Church 
like  an  independent  grown-up  son,  who  has  earned 
his  father's  complete  confidence  by  proofs  of  his 
reliability  and  obedience  (ii.  12).  He  trusts  that  the 
congregation's  own  insight,  guided  by  God's  Spirit, 
will  discover  what  is  right  (iii.  15). 
\  The  loving  relations  between  Paul  and  the  Church 
'  are  similar  to  those  subsisting  between  him  and  the 
sister  Church  at  Thessalonica,  but  still  more  intimate 
j  because  tried  by  time.  We  have  (Phil.  iv.  1)  almost 
the  same  terms  of  endearment  .as  in  1  Thess.  ii.  19, 
"  my  joy  and  crown."  The  Apostle  longs  to  go  to 
them  (i.  8),  and  in  the  meantime  sends  his  best- 
beloved  assistant  (h.  19).  He  is  guided  in  all  his 
emotions  and  feelings  by  regard  for  the  weal  of  the 
Church :  death  would  be  dear  to  him,  because  it 
would  unite  him  with  the  Lord ;  yet  it  is  more 
necessary  that  he  should  remain  alive  for  the  Church's 
sake  (i.  24) ;  should  death  come,  however,  he  will  be 
an  offering  for  the  faith  of  the  readers  (ii.   17). 

He  knows,  too,  that  he  is  borne  up  by  the  inter- 
cession of  his  Phihppians  (i.  19)  as  well  as  by  their 
material  support  (iv.  10  ff.),  which  latter  found  special 
expression  in  the  appearance  of  Epaphroditus  as 
representative  of  the  Church.  Evidently  he  was 
not  only  to  bring  over  to  the  Apostle  a  sum  of 
money,  but  in  name  of  and  on  commission  from  the 
Church,  to   do   for   him   all   those   personal  services 


THE   CHURCHES   OF    MACEDONIA  95 

which  a  father  may  look  for  from  his  son.  Illness 
had  prevented  that,  and  so  the  Apostle  sends  him 
back  (ii.  25,  30).  The  same  feelings  bind  Apostle  and 
Church  together:  one  with  him  in  obedience  (ii.  12), 
it  is  to  be  one  with  him  also  in  joy  (ii.  18). 

Among  the  few  features  in  the  picture  of  this 
Church  which  we  find  in  the  Epistle,  the  foremost 
place  is  given  to  praise  of  its  active  participation  in 
the  preaching  of  the  Gospel,  "  from  the  first  days 
until  now"  (i.  5.)  This  was  proved  in  monetary 
support  of  Paul  and  his  missionary  assistants ;  but 
the  Apostle  certainly  did  not  inean  to  confine  his 
praise  to  that.  They  preach  the  Gospel  with  word 
and  deed :  hence  he  reminds  them — we  can  hardly 
say  exhorts — to  walk  worthy  of  the  Gospel  (i.  27). 
It  may  be  that  Paul,  who  in  imprisonment  had  had 
many  sad  experiences,  fears  a  falling  away  in  zeal, 
Avhen  he  writes  to  them,  "  Work  out  your  own 
salvation  with  fear  and  trembling  "  (ii.  12).  But  who 
would  conclude  from  that,  that  in  Philippi  a  spirit  of 
assurance  and  indifference  had  spread  ?  Nor  can 
murmurings  and  disputings  have  been  a  leading 
feature  in  this  Church ;  yet  the  sorely-oppressed 
Apostle  writes,  "  Do  all  without  murmurings  and 
disputings"  (ii.  14).  Again  it  is  only  the  Apostle's 
own  feelings,  and  the  desire  to  strengthen  himself, 
that  make  him  three  times  write,  "  Rejoice  ye  "  (ii. 
18,  iii.  1,  iv.  4);  he  heartens  himself  thus,  and  shows 
his  beloved  Philippians  the  all-compensating  value 
of  the  Gospel,  which  he  had  himself  so  clearly 
experienced  (iii.  7  fF.).  And  when,  in  view  of  the 
Parousia,  which  is  somewhat  postponed  probably  by 
the  prospect  of  his  own  death  (i.  23)  but  is  by  no 


96  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

means  far  distant  (iii.  20,  iv.  5),  he  repeats  the  Lord's 
exhortation,  "Be  careful  for  nothing"  (iv.  6),  he 
indicates,  perhaps,  the  point  where  the  Phihppians 
differed  from  the  immature  Thessalonians,  but  gives 
no  proof  of  any  appearance  of  incipient  wordhness. 

On  the   contrary,  the  Church  stands  there  hke  a 

hght  in  the  world,  clearly  separated  by  its  blameless- 

ness  and  harmlessness  from  the  crooked  and  perverse 

generation    (ii.    15    f),   yet   influencing   the    outside 

world  by  its  gentleness  (iv.  5).     Let  the  adversaries 

threaten  never  so  much,  the  Philippians  do  not  need 

to  fear ;  for  they  know  that  all  suffering  for  Christ's 

sake  is  a  proof  of  divine  grace,  a  token  of  salvation 

(i.  28  f.).     They  do  not  depend  on  themselves.     It  is 

God   who  works    in  them  both   to   will    and    to    do 

(ii.   13) ;  Christ,  by  virtue  of  the  authority  bestowed 

on  Him,  will  lead  them  to  perfection  and  glory  (iii. 

21).     Everywhere  it  is  clear  that  the  Apostle  is  only 

recalling  thoughts  which  lived  in  the  Church. 

/       The   consciousness  of  unity  is   largely  developed. 

When  the  Apostle  prays   that   evermore   they  may 

recognise   the   differences   between    themselves    and 

others — a    thing    on   which   the   Jew   grounded    his 

pride  (Rom.  ii.  18) — his  desire  is  to  strengthen  their 

I    consciousness  of  superiority  in  face  of  the  heathen,  and 

'    above  all  of  the  Jews  (iii.  2  ff.).     As  a  matter  of  fact, 

j  1  among  all  the  Pauline  Churches  the  Church  of  Philippi 

!  I  appears  from  the  first  to  have  been  the  best  organised 

!  and   most   efficient.     It   is   certainly   not   altogether 

because  the  Epistle  to  the  Philippians  is  the  latest  of 

all   that  we  find  episkopoi  and    diakonoi  mentioned 

only  here  in  one   of  Paul's    Churches    (i.   1).     It   is 

rather  an  indication  of  a  strong  feeling  of  common 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   MACEDONIA  97 

interest,  that  it  liad  fashioned  organs  for  its  various 
activities.  The  mention  of  officials  in  the  salutation 
is  obviously  connected  with  the  main  purpose  of  the 
Epistle,  acknowledging  receipt  of  the  money  sent. 
Still  it  is  always  open  to  suppose  that  these  contribu- 
tions proceeded  in  the  first  place  from  private  people 
like  Lydia,  the  dealer  in  purples.  That  Paul  (2  Cor. 
ii.  9)  speaks  of  "the  brethren  who  came  from  Mace- 
donia "  rather  favours  this  view,  and  the  "  ye "  of 
Phil.  iv.  15  f.  does  not  contradict  it.  It  is  Paul's 
way  to  generalise  thus,  and  instead  of  naming  in- 
dividuals to  name  the  Church,  instead  of  the  Church 
the  province  {cf.  2  Cor.  xi.  8  f.  with  Phil.  iv.  15).  At 
the  time  of  the  Epistle  it  was  no  private  matter  any 
longer,  but  a  piece  of  Church  business  {eKKXrja-ia,  iv.  15) 
performed  by  the  officials  on  the  commission  of  all.  It 
presupposes  a  consolidation  of  Church  interests  such  as 
we  do  not  find  elsewhere.  The  character  of  the  town, 
as  one  of  no  very  great  size,  somewhat  remote  and 
used  to  the  strong  discipline  of  Roman  administra- 
tion, may  have  made  consolidation  easier ;  yet  it 
remains  a  sign  of  vigorous  Church  consciousness  that 
this  office  was  created. 

On  the  other  hand  the  exhortations  to  unity  (i.  27), 
to  mutual  love  and  respectful  subordination  (ii.  2  f.), 
do  not  attain  any  great  importance.  The  employ- 
ment in  them  of  the  example  of  Christ  (ii.  5  fF.) 
shows  how  high  the  moral  standard  was.  Paul  may 
have  been  thinking  of  actual  circumstances  in  the 
Church,  and  we  learn  (iv.  2  f.)  that  there  was  a 
special  quarrel  between  two  women  which  may  have 
caused  dispeace.  We  know  nothing  further  about 
the   dispute.     It   cannot   have   been    serious.     It   is 

7 


98  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

interesting  to  note  that  apparently  a  single  in- 
dividual, perhaps  the  husband  of  one  of  them,  perhaps 
one  of  the  Church  officials,  is  held  to  be  specially 
responsible  for  their  behaviour — another  proof  of  their 
consciousness  of  interdependence. 

In  this  Epistle  there  is  no  other  indication  of 
special  defects.  Paul's  exhortation  in  iv.  8,  "  What- 
soever things  are  true,  whatsoever  things  are  honest, 
whatsoever  things  are  just,  whatsoever  things  are 
pure,  whatsoever  things  are  lovely,  whatsoever  things 
are  of  good  report,  if  there  be  any  virtue  and  if  there 
1  be  any  praise,  think  on  these  things,"  only  reveals  his 
high  estimate  of  the  Church.  When  we  remember, 
too,  that  he  was  accurately  informed  about  it  through 
Epaphroditus  and  others,  we  may  conclude,  without 
fear,  that  the  life  of  the  community  must  really  have 
been  an  exemplary  one. 

The  Christian  communities  of  Macedonia  are  in- 
deed exemplary  and  typical  (2  Cor.  viii.  1  fF.).  We 
found  it  so  in  the  young  Church  of  Thessalonica 
(1  Thess.  i.  7),  and  we  find  it  even  more  clearly  in 
the  mature  Church  of  Philippi.     In  the  one  case  we 

>  observe  a  characteristic  defect  of  immaturity,  the  evil 
consequence  of  over-strained    Parousia  expectation  ; 

ry  in  the  other  we  observe  the  proof  of  Christianity  in 
the  power  to  give  itself  a  form  corresponding  to  its 
needs. 

Here  we  will  not  deny  facts  which  indicate  that 
a  very  different  state  of  matters  might  arise  even 
in  these  pattern-communities.  Discord  and  worldli- 
ness  were  lurking  at  the  door,  and  unfortunately,  as 
we  shall  afterwards  see,  they  gained  admission. 


THE  PAULINE  CHURCHES. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Churches  of  Asia  Minor. 

galatia  and  phrygia. 

The  European  mission  of  the  Apostle  is,  so  to  speak, 
framed  by  his  work  in  Asia  Minor.  Under  that  I  do 
not  include  his  labours  in  Pisidia  and  Lycaonia.  For 
the  so-called  first  missionary  journey,  undertaken 
along  with  Barnabas,  which  brought  Paul  by  way 
of  Cyprus  into  these  southern  parts  of  Asia  Minor 
(Acts  xiii.  14),  belongs  to  the  first  period  of  his 
labours — the  fourteen  years  described  by  himself 
(Gal.  i.  21),  as  the  Syrian-Cilician  period  with  Tarsus 
and  Antioch  as  centres.  It  is  clearly  distinguished 
from  the  second  or  Asia  Minor-European  journey 
with  centres  in  Ephesus  and  Corinth.  The  Apostle 
is  thinking  of  the  latter  when  he  writes  to  the 
Romans  (xv.  23)  that  he  has  no  longer  any  scope 
in  these  regions,  and  intends  to  seek  a  new  sphere  of 
activity  in  the  far  west.  The  apostolic  conference 
of  the  year  51,  and  his  separation  from  his  old 
missionary  colleague  Barnabas,  mark  the  transition 
from  the  first  to  the  second  period.  After  a  short 
visit  to  the  Lycaonian-Pisidian  Churches  (Acts  xv. 
40,  xvi.  5),  which  do  not  afterwards  appear  again,  he 

99 


100  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

sets  out  for  his  new  field  of  activity,  detained  at  first 
against  his  will  in  Galatia  (Acts  xvi.  6,  cf.  Gal.  iv. 
13).  Thence  he  reaches  the  coast  at  Troas  (Acts 
xvi.  7  f.)  and  so  finds  his  way  to  Europe.  But  in 
Corinth  he  looks  again  towards  Asia.  The  newly- 
won  fellow-workers  Aquila  and  Priscilla  become  his 
pioneers  for  Ephesus,  while  he  himself  makes  a  visit  to 
Jerusalem  and  Antioch.  Then — avoiding  Lycaonia- 
Pisidia — he  proceeds  northwards  through  Galatia  and 
Phrygia  to  Ephesus,  the  new  centre  of  a  three  years' 
activity  (Acts  xviii.  18  IF.,  xix.  1,  xx.  31).  How  far 
from  here  Paul  himself  undertook  missionary  journeys 
we  do  not  know.  It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  in 
Phrygia,  which  is  only  a  few  days'  journey  east, 
communities  arose  which  had  never  seen  his  face 
(Col.  ii.  1),  but  were  nevertheless,  as  founded  by  his 
pupils,  subject  to  his  counsel  and  control. 

For  information  about  the  Ephesus  Church,  the 
most  important  in  this  mission  circuit,  we  are  de- 
pendent on  the  report  in  Acts.  The  so-called  Epistle 
to  the  Ephesians,  whether  Pauline  or  not,  certainly 
does  not  deal  with  the  special  circumstances  of  this 
community  so  well  known  to  the  Apostle. 

Ephesus,  the  ancient  and  renowned  sanctuary  of 
Diana,  long  a  link  between  Greek  and  Asiatic 
civilisation,  had,  as  the  capital  of  the  province  at 
the  beginning  of  the  empire,  grown  to  an  immense 
extent.  Notorious  for  its  sensual  and  luxurious  life,  it 
was  at  the  same  time  a  centre  of  religious  charlatanry 
and  magic.  Alongside  of  the  ancient  Artemisium 
the  worship  of  the  Emperor  and  all  sorts  of  other 
religious  movements  established  themselves.  Among 
those  to  be  found   there   were   Jews  following  the 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA   MINOR        101 

lucrative  profession  of  enchantment  and  demon- 
exorcism,  disciples  of  John,  Hypsistarians,  and  other 
precursors  of  Christianity.  Paul  himself,  whose  great 
activity  there  seems  to  have  made  itself  felt  in  the 
highest  circles,  was  looked  upon  by  outsiders  as  a 
"  Goete "  of  this  kind :  things  which  touched  his 
body  were  said  to  possess  healing  power  (Acts  xix. 
12),  and  the  name  of  the  God  of  salvation  preached 
by  him  was  used  also  by  non-Christian  exorcists 
(xix.  13  fF.).  Not  without  great  pains  was  this 
superstition  overcome  by  Christianity.  We  may  be 
quite  sure  that  Paul,  if  he  possessed  the  gift  of  heal- 
ing (1  Cor.  xii.  9,  28),  laid  no  stress  upon  it.  He 
was  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel,  and  this  message  of 
God's  grace  in  Christ  was  at  the  same  time  a  power 
of  moral  renewal.  This  is  expressed  in  those  words 
of  farewell  which  he  is  said  to  have  spoken  to  the 
representatives  of  the  Chvu'ch  of  Ephesus  in  JNIiletus 
(Acts  XX.  17-38).  A  pattern  of  humility  and 
patience,  he  had  taught  publicly  and  from  house  to 
house  ;  he  had  maintained  himself  by  the  work  of  his 
hands,  without  desire  for  silver,  gold,  or  fine  garments, 
wholly  devoted  to  tending  the  Christian  Church, 
warning  each  separately  and  making  known  to  all 
the  whole  will  of  God.  And  if  any  significance 
attaches  to  the  accounts  given  in  Acts  xix.,  it  is  the 
moral  effect  proceeding  from  Christianity  and  its 
victory  over  superstition,  as  proved  by  the  burning 
of  the  books  of  enchantment  (xix.   18  f ). 

In  the  same  way  the  moral  purity  of  Christianity 
comes  into  a  clear  light  in  the  rising  of  the  heathen 
followers  of  Diana  and  the  local  patriots  against  the 
preaching  of  the  Apostle,  due  to  the  greed  of  some 


102  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

artisans  and  organised  by  Demetrius  the  silversmith 
(Acts  xix.  23  ff.).  The  Christians  cannot  be  re- 
proached either  with  robbing  temples  or  with  blas- 
phemy (xix.  37).  However  much  their  activity  may 
have  damaged  the  heathen  cult  and  the  trades 
depending  upon  it — as  Pliny  shows  later  in  the  case 
of  Bithynia — they  kept  themselves  from  all  tumult, 
and  laboured  peacefully.  If  there  are  disturbances, 
the  other  side  is  to  blame  (xix.  40). 

We  should  have  been  glad  to  learn  more  here  of  the 
development  of  the  community  which  we  shall  after- 
wards find  to  be  still  a  centre  of  Christianity.  But 
the  sources  are  exhausted. 

On  the  other  hand,  for  the  Churches  of  Galatia  and 
Phrygia  we  possess  in  the  Epistles  to  the  Galatians 
and  to  the  Colossians  most  instructive  witnesses.  In 
point  of  time  they  do  not  lie  far  apart.  The  Epistle 
to  the  Galatians  was  written  after  Paul's  second  visit 
to  Galatia  (iv.  13),  that  is  to  say,  after  the  summer 
of  54  (Acts  xviii.  23),  probably,  however,  not  during 
the  following  three  years'  stay  in  Ephesus,  but  on  the 
subsequent  European  collection-journey  in  the  year 
57-58.  The  Epistle  to  the  Colossians  came  from  the 
imprisonment  (iv.  10),  evidently  the  Ceesarean  im- 
prisonment in  the  years  58-60.  Only  the  Epistle  to 
the  Romans  lies  between  them.  Otherwise,  however, 
they  are  separated  by  an  event  fraught  with  im- 
portance. After  coming  to  terms  with  the  leaders 
of  the  Jewish  Church  of  Jerusalem,  Paul  had  fallen  a 
victim  to  the  attacks  of  the  unbelieving  Jews,  and 
though  rescued  by  the  Roman  military,  had  lost  his 
freedom  and  his  activity. 

There  is  a  more  important  distinction  in  the  fact 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA   MINOR         103 

that  Paul  in  the  one  case  has  to  do  with  churches 
which  he  himself  founded  and  had  already  visited, 
while  the  churches  of  the  Lycus-valley,  Colossal  and 
the  neighbouring  Hierapolis  and  Laodicea,  were 
personally  unknown  to  him  (Col.  ii.  1).  Founded  by 
pupils  and  friends,  they  were  known  to  him  only 
through  the  reports  of  others.  Yet  here,  too,  inter- 
course seems  to  have  been  active  {cf.  Col.  iv.  10,  the 
earlier  commandments  touching  Mark).  Epaphras 
(i.  7)  is  with  Paul  when  he  writes  the  letter.  It  is 
perhaps  not  a  mere  chance  that  this  epistle  to 
strangers  contains  more  personalities  than  the  Epistle 
to  the  Galatians,  highly  personal  as  it  is. 

It  matters  little  that  the  people  addressed  are  of  ' 
different  nationalities.  It  is  true  we  look  for  the 
Galatians  of  Paul  in  a  country  occupied  by  Celts, 
while  the  Lycus-valley  belongs  to  Phrygia.  But  at 
that  time  no  deep-going  distinction  can  have  existed 
for  the  Christian  Churches.  Paul  preached  and  wrote 
Greek  in  the  one  place  as  in  the  other.  These 
districts  had  been  long  hellenised ;  at  least  the  towns 
were,  and  these  alone  are  concerned  in  the  Pauline 
mission. 

In  Ancyra  there  were  Helladarchs  as  well  as 
Galatarchs.  It  may  be  that  the  Greek  element  was 
to  some  extent  a  mere  external  varnish,  but  there 
was  similarity  also  beneath  the  varnish.  For  the 
Asia  Minor  Galatians,  in  spite  of  their  adherence 
to  their  Celtic  speech  and  laws,  must  have  been 
strongly  influenced  in  religious  affairs  by  the  kindred 
Phrygians.  But  little  in  the  Epistle  of  Paul  finds 
its  explanation  in  Celtic  peculiarities,  not  to  speak 
of  the  unfortunate    attempt   to  discover  a  Teutonic 


104  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

element  here.  The  type  is  quite  similar  to  that  in 
ColossEe ;  it  is  Asia  Minor  nature- religion  with  its 
extravagances  and  its  asceticism  which,  excited  by 
Judaistic  agitation,  asserts  itself  in  the  Christianity 
of  these  communities.  Not  the  character  of  the 
people  but  the  way  in  which  they  were  influenced 
must  have  varied  in  these  places ;  hence  the  differ- 
ences. This  agitation,  introduced  from  without, 
which  threatened  to  destroy  the  Pauline  foundation 
of  Christianity,  is  the  most  interesting  and  most 
important  feature  in  the  picture  of  these  communities. 
Here,  however,  we  have  not  to  do  with  foreign 
agitators ;  they  will  occupy  our  attention  later. 
Rather  the  point  here  is  to  note  the  moral  presup- 
positions within  the  Churches  which  gave  entrance 
to  the  agitation,  and  the  moral  consequences  which  it 
had. 

Fortunately  in  these  two  epistles  Paul  speaks  of 
the  moral  instruction  he  had  imparted.  Of  this  we 
have  already  spoken.  The  result  is  that  these 
directions  admit  no  conclusions  to  be  drawn  as  to 
the  actual  state  of  morality  in  these  communities,  so 
that  we  can  affirm  neither  that  the  ideal  set  up  by 
Paul  there  was  realised,  nor  contrariwise  that  his 
exhortations  were  occasioned  by  particular  defects, 
apart,  perhaps,  from  single  features  like  the  enchant- 
ments among  the  Galatians  (v.  20).  These  sorceries, 
it  is  true,  seem  to  have  constituted  a  real  danger  for 
the  Christianity  of  the  place.  So  late  as  the  year 
312  a  synod  at  Ancyra  had  to  issue  orders  against 
Christians  practising  them.  Perhaps,  also,  in  the  ex- 
travagant banquetings  Paul  had  a  specific  Galatian 
fault   in   view    (v.  21).     The    Phrygians   were   from 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA    MINOR         105 

ancient  times  a  slave  people,  infamous  for  their  evil 
speaking  ;  Paul  may  therefore  have  had  reason  to  warn 
the  Colossians  against  calumny  and  slanderous  gossip 
(iii.  8),  and  to  commend  gracious  speech  seasoned 
with  salt  (iv.  6) ;  at  the  same  time  he  warns  the 
slaves  against  eye  service  and  the  masters  against 
cruelty  (iii.  22  fF.).  In  general,  all  we  can  learn 
from  these  many  directions  is  how  the  forces  of 
Cln'istianity  must  operate  in  coinmunities  of  normal 
development. 

Normal  development,  however,  is  a  rare  thing. 
History  is  not  guided  according  to  our  logic.  It  is 
much  too  rich,  and  the  powers  which  it  brings  to 
development  are  far  too  complex  to  enable  us  to 
anticipate  the  course  that  a  sequence  of  events  must 
take.  Only  seldom  can  we  grasp  it  by  reflection 
when  the  whole  course  of  events  lies  completed  before 
us.  In  these  communities  also  we  find  normal 
development  checked  by  external  influences. 

In  any  case,  in  both  letters  Paul  bears  in  general 
good  witness  to  the  communities.  The  Galatians 
"ran  well"  (v.  7);  they  have  even  suffered  for  their 
faith  (iii.  4).  They  contributed  to  the  collection 
(1  Cor.  xvi.  1).  The  churches  of  Galatia  evidently 
form  a  closely-bound  communion  (i.  2).  No  blemishes 
except  the  one  which  claims  all  Paul's  thoughts,  are 
spoken  of  at  all.  So  also  in  Colossse  :  Paul  can  address 
them  as  saints  and  faithful  brethren  (i.  2),  boasting  of 
their  faith  and  their  love  to  all  the  saints  (i.  4) ;  he 
rejoices  at  the  sight  of  their  order,  the  steadfastness  of 
their  Christian  faith  (ii.  5),  and  the  news  of  their  love 
towards  him  (i.  8).  And  when  he  prays  that  their 
knowledge  of  God's  will  may  be  increased  and  they 


106  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

themselves  strengthened  unto  all  patience  and  long- 
suffering  with  joyfulness  (i.  9  fF.),  it  is  only  what  we 
found  in  the  pattern  church  of  Macedonia.  Still  more 
>  clearly  than  in  the  case  of  Galatia  the  close  connection 
between  the  neighbouring  churches  of  Colossee,  Hier- 
apolis  and  Laodicea  is  revealed ;  the  greetings  of  the 
Apostle  are  for  all ;  he  arranges  for  the  exchange  of 
his  letters.  The  conditions  within  the  Church  are  still 
the  old  loose  ones  :  naturally  there  are  teachers  and 
taught,  older  and  younger  Christians  (Gal.  vi.  6).  But 
this  seems  a  condition  of  free  choice  rather  than  of 
official  ruling,  which  of  course  involves  an  obligation 
of  fellowship  in  both  spiritual  and  material  things. 
In  the  Phrygian  Churches  a  man  of  the  name  of 
Archippus  took  over  a  diaconate,  evidently  a  kind 
of  voluntary  ecclesiastical  office,  of  the  particular 
nature  of  which  we  know  nothing. 

We  shall  think  rather  of  the  position  of  Stephanas 
in  Corinth  than  of  the  "  bishops  and  deacons "  of 
Philippi.  But  let  us  observe  that  here  Paul's  concern 
is  not  to  strengthen  the  authority  of  these  officials,  as 
in  the  case  of  Stephanas,  and  to  a  certain  extent  also 
in  the  case  of  Epaphroditus  of  Philippi,  but  to  exhort 
Archippus  to  loyal  fulfilment  of  the  task  he  has  volun- 
tarily undertaken.  The  form,  "  Say  to  Archippus," 
which  Paul  gives  his  exhortation  shows  the  extent  to 
which  the  community  was  regarded  as  responsible. 

Upon  this  pleasing  development  there  now  fell  the 
mildew  of  strange  doctrine.  In  Galatia  we  have  to 
face  the  same  Jewish  agitation  as  we  have  already 
seen  in  Corinth,  only  here  the  material  aspect 
/  is  more  in  evidence  than  the  personal.  Naturally, 
however,  success  was  impossible  until  the   Apostle's 


THE    CHURCHES   OF   ASIA    MINOR         107 

authority  was    first  shaken.     Paul    meets  the  attack) 
with  an  elaborate  demonstration  of  his  independent  \ 
Apostleship.     It    was   authorised   by   God  Himself, 
vouchsafed    to    him   through   the    vision   of    Christ, 
exercised   in    independent    mission-work,    recognised 
by   the   authorities    in    Jerusalem,    and    maintained 
against  them  (Gal.  i.  2) ;  hence  he  reminds  them  of 
their   earlier   enthusiastic    and  self-sacrificing  attach- 
ment   (iv.    13  fF.).     It   even    seems   that   doubt  was 
expressed  as  to  the  Apostle's  uprightness  (i.  20)  and 
the  sincerity  of  his  preaching  (v.  11).     Paul  is  roused 
to  the  highest  pitch.     He  begins   the   Epistle   with  J 
"I  marvel"  instead  of  the  usual  thanksgiving  (i.  6). 
He  addresses  them  as  "foolish  Galatians"  (iii.  1).     It 
is  true  he  endeavours  to  avoid  conveying  the  impres- 
sion of  a  feeling  of  personal  injury  (iv.  12,  cf.  with 
2  Cor.  ii.  5,  vii.   12) :    but   his    cursing   of  the   per- 
verters  (i.  7  fF.,  v.  10  fF.)  and  his  own  signature,  with 
the  weighty  and   almost  violent   resume  (vi.   11  fF), 
show  the  vehemence  of  his  anger   against  the  alien 
incomers.     In   a   burst  of  rhetoric   he   explains   the 
sudden  apostasy  of  his  communities  as  the  effect  of 
enchantment  (iii.  1). 

What  is  the  general  theme  ?  The  Galatians,  be-  1 
cause  of  the  urgency  of  Jewish  agitators,  have  recog-  I 
nised  the  obligation  of  Old  Testament  ceremonial 
law  for  Christians  also.  They  have  begun  to  observe 
the  Jewish  feast  days  (iv.  10),  probably  also  to  order 
their  life  according  to  the  commandments  touching 
pure  and  impure  meats  (ii.  11  f.).  The  demand  for 
circumcision  was  still  under  discussion  (v.  2).  We 
can  understand  the  Apostle's  excitement.  This 
"different  Gospel,"  in  his    eyes,  did  away  with    the 


108  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  (i.  6) ;  to  him  law  and  grace 
were  contradictory,  not  complementary ;  he  viewed 
the  Old  Testament  as  the  book  of  God's  promises — 
the  law  it  contained  was  only  a  temporary  ordinance 
of  passing  significance ;  the  efforts  of  the  agitators 
were  explicable  to  him  only  on  the  basis  of  lower 
selfish  motives ;  he  looked  upon  the  apostasy  of  the 
Galatians  to  the  Judaists  as  slavery  to  human 
authority,  a  denial  not  of  him,  for  human  authority 
was  of  no  consequence  (ii.  6),  but  of  the  authority  of 
the  Lord  Himself. 

He  considered  it  a  weakness,  a  letting  of  them- 
selves be  hindered  from  running  well  (v.  7),  a  falling 
back  to  the  sub-Christian  level  (iv.  8  f.),  and  there  he 
was  right.  Pagan  inability  to  understand  a  pure, 
reasonable  service  of  God,  a  worship  of  God  in  spirit 
and  in  truth,  pagan  customs  of  festivals,  of  meat 
observances,  and  similar  things  may  have  been 
unobservedly  helping  to  dispose  the  Galatians  to 
the  ready  reception  of  Judaistic  doctrines.  But 
though  Paul  was  right  in  making  this  his  main 
ground  of  reproach,  it  was  certainly  not  the  ultimate 
cause.  AVhat  impressed  the  Galatians  in  the  Gospel 
of  the  Jews  was  just  its  morality.  However  para- 
doxical it  may  sound,  the  acceptance  of  Jewish  law 
by  the  Galatian  Church  which  Paul  combated  so 
vigorously  is  a  proof  of  the  morality  of  their 
Christianity.  The  "  Thou  shalt "  of  Jewish  law 
impressed  them.  If  faith  was  obedience,  and  if  the 
Old  Testament  was  God's  revelation,  as  Paul  had 
taught  them  it  was,  the  fulfilment  of  God's  com- 
mandments must  be  the  perfection  of  faith.  The 
Judaistic   doctrine  presented  itself  as   a   completion 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA   MINOR         109 

of  Christianity  and  its  moral  supplement.  To  be 
sure,  from  the  Pauline  standpoint,  and  also  from  that 
of  the  Reformation,  their  conduct  showed  weakness. 
It  revealed  failure  to  appreciate  the  value  of  evan- 
gelical freedom  (v.  1),  undervaluation  of  the  moral 
power  of  faith  (v.  22  f.),  denial  of  that  which  con- 
stitutes the  essence  of  Christianity,  viz. ,  the  possession 
of  the  Spirit  (iii.  2  fF.,  v.  25).  But  shall  we  despise 
these  Christians  for  their  inability  to  follow  up  the 
profound  thoughts  of  Paulinism  ?  That  the  law 
works  only  curse  (iii.  10  if.);  that  the  scripture  hath 
concluded  all  things  under  sin,  that  the  promise  by 
faith  in  Jesus  Christ  might  be  given  to  them  that 
believe  (iii.  22) — who  that  has  not  had  Paul's  ex- 
perience, can  quite  understand  that  ?  Pelagianism, 
Pietism,  we  dare  say  the  whole  doctrines  of  Roman 
Catholicism  and  a  large  part  of  the  Lutheran  theology, 
combine  to  support  the  Galatians  here. 

That  the  moral  motives  by  which  the  Galatians 
allowed  themselves  to  be  guided  were  really  credit- 
able is  shown,  however  little  it  may  be  admitted,  by 
the  whole  nature  of  Paul's  argumentation.  With  all 
his  excitement,  the  tone  he  adopts  is  quite  different 
from  that  of  the  second  epistle  to  the  Corinthians. 
It  is  only  with  want  of  judgment,  and  not  with 
wickedness,  that  he  reproaches  the  Galatians,  and  he 
takes  pains  in  an  elaborate  argument  to  show  froin 
their  own  premises  their  perverted  and  sub-Christian 
standpoint.  The  nature  of  Galatian  Christianity  is 
made  quite  clear  by  comparison  with  that  of  the 
Corinthians :  nowhere  here  is  there  any  mention  of 
such  moral  disorders ;  everywhere  only  honest, 
although  misjudged,  moral  effort.     When  Paul  warns 


110  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

them  of  the  misuse  of  freedom  (v.  13),  it  is  only  the 
necessary  supplementing  and  safeguarding  of  his 
exhortation  to  stand  fast  in  it  (v.  1). 

\      Only  one  serious  defect  eating  into  the  life  of  the 

/  Church  can  be  inferred  from  the  Apostle's  exhorta- 
'  tions.  It  is  the  immediate  consequence  of  the  above 
agitation — viz.,  discord.  Although  Paul,  following 
his  usual  practice,  alvi^ays  addresses  the  community 
of  the  Galatian  Churches,  it  is  certain  that  all  of 
them  have  not  equally  accepted  the  ideas  and 
demands  of  the  agitators.  Groups  were  formed ; 
those  zealous  for  the  law  formed  the  party  of  progress, 
while  the  supporters  of  Paul  were  the  conservatives. 
Things  must  have  gone  pretty  far,  when  Paul,  evidently 
on  the  ground  of  reports  which  have  reached  him, 
employs  the  words,  "  If  ye  bite  and  devour  one 
another,  take  heed  that  ye  be  not  consumed  of  one 

I  another  "  (v.  15).  Every  party  impulse  lets  loose  the 
passions,  and  excites  ambition,  love  of  quarrelling  and 

'  jealousy  (v.  26).  We  can  understand  why  Paul  in  his 
catalogue  of  vices  occupies  so  much  space  with  terms 
expressive  of  dispeace  (v.  20),  why  he  so  emphasises 
love  within  and  without  the  Church  (vi.  10),  why 
he  puts  love  as  the  true  "  law  of  Christ "  (v|.  2,  cf. 
"  faith  working  through  love "  v.  6),  on  the  side  of 
liberty  as  its  supplement  (v.  13  fF.),  and  represents  in 
this  epistle  the  death  of  Christ  as  above  all  a  service 
of  love  (i.  4,  ii.  20,  cf.  iii.  1).  With  this  is  closely  con- 
nected the  fact  that  Paul  asks  for  gentleness  towards 
the  fallen  (vi.  1),  the  keeping  together  of  disciples  and 
teachers,  and  the  supporting  of  the  latter  by  the 
former  (vi.  6  ff. ).  The  restoration  of  love  and  a 
respectful  attitude  to  himself  (iv.  19),  and  the  stress 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA   MINOR         111 

whicli  he  lays  upon  close  union  with  the  whole  of 
Christianity  (i.  2,  cf.  iv.  17),  lie  in  the  same  direction. 
These  plienomena  are  analogous  to  those  which  we 
observed  in  considering  the  parties  in  Corinth. 

If  the  Judaistic  party  had  succeeded,  the  life  of 
the  Galatian  Churches  would  have  assumed  quite  a 
different  character.  The  painful  observance  of  external 
and  trifling  duties  then  inevitably  connected  with 
the  law  would  have  defeated  the  free  spirit  of  Pauline 
Christianity.  From  the  ethical  standpoint  the 
Churches  would  perhaps  have  become  more  "  moral," 
better,  holier  ;  but  they  would  have  lost  in  moral 
power.  For  moral  power  is  developed  only  under 
the  protection  of  freedom.  That  that  did  not  happen 
is  proved  by  the  preservation  of  this  epistle,  as  well 
as  by  the  later  history  of  the  Asia  Minor  Churches, 
to  which  we  shall  afterwards  return. 

Similar,  and  yet  with  some  points  of  difference,  was 
the  state  of  matters  in  Colossae.  In  Galatia  it  wasi 
simple  legalism ;  here  the  ideal  of  asceticism,  widely 
diffused  at  the  time,  united  with  Old  Testament  ideas. 
The  result  is  about  the  same.  In  Colossa?,  too,  the 
Jewish  festivals  were  observed,  and  the  Old  Testa- 
ment regulations  as  to  meats  followed  (ii.  16,  21)  ; 
even  circumcision  seems  to  have  been  suggested  (ii. 
11  ff.).  But  the  tendency,  the  moving  force  is  quite 
different  from  what  we  observed  in  Galatia.  There,  in 
spite  of  certain  connecting  points  in  the  pre-Christian 
religion  of  the  readers,  it  is  an  essentially  Jewish,  we  ] 
might  almost  say  Pharisaic,  ideal  that  is  pictured  to 
the  people ;  here  elements  springing  from  heathen 
nature-religion  and  oriental  Dualism  appear  with 
some  slight  amount  of  Old  Testament  framing.     The 


112  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

very  mention  of  drink  as  well  as  meat  (ii.  16)  goes 
beyond  Old  Testament  regulations.  The  "  touch  not, 
taste  not,  handle  not "  (ii.  21 ),  shows  a  tendency  directed 
less  to  single  pollutions  than  to  abstinence  as  such. 
The  Christians  of  Colossge  aim  in  this  arbitrary 
worship  at  self-humiliation  and  mortification  of  the 
body  (ii.  23).  Essenism  has  been  detected  by  some 
writers,  and  indeed  it  does  contain  a  similar  blend  of 
Jewish  legalism  with  an  oriental-hellenistic  Dualism. 
But  I  do  not  see  what  ground  there  is  for  ascribing  to 
this  self-absorbed  Jewish  monasticism  a  propaganda 
extending  to  Asia  Minor  and  Rome.  Dualism,  with 
the  asceticism  inseparable  from  it,  was,  so  to  speak, 
in  the  air ;  it  was  the  strongest  spiritual  tendency  of 
the  time,  almost  equal  to  Christianity  in  power.  We 
shall  afterwards  see  the  varied  connections  which  it 
established  with  Christianity.  Here  it  is  enough  to 
point  out  that  the  Apostle  Paul  himself  had  to  pay 
it  his  tribute  (1  Cor.  vii.  8  ff.,  26). 

Can  we  wonder  that  in  Churches  which  were  only 
indirectly  touched  by  his  spirit  this  tendency 
flourished  still  more  vigorously  ?  It  is  quite  intelli- 
gible that  recourse  was  had  to  the  Old  Testament  as 
authority  for  ascetic  demands  of  this  kind  ;  the  Old 
Testament  was  the  Holy  Scripture.  Much  more  sig- 
nificant is  the  attempt  to  give  the  movement  a  specu- 
lative-theosophical  foundation,  in  which  the  angels, 
as  an  intermediary  species  of  beings  between  the 
transcendental  God  and  the  material  creature,  played 
1  a  leading  role.  Belief  in  angels  and  angelolatry  were 
integral  parts  of  the  Jewish  piety  of  the  time.  Even 
the  Christians — Paul  included — shared  the  belief. 
Angel   worship   is   very   much   subordinated   to   the 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA   MINOR         113 

thought  of  God's  revelation  in  Christ,  yet  not  rooted 
out.  Paul  indeed  knows,  apart  from  the  "  Lord,"  only 
ministering  powers,  as  does  also  the  writer  of  the  Epistle 
to  the  Hebrews  ;  but  elsewhere  the  angel-cult  comes 
much  in  evidence.  Heathenism  found  in  this  a 
means  of  adjusting  its  idea  of  good  and  evil  spirits 
which  are  everywhere  active,  to  monotheism.  Under 
the  pressure  of  dualistic  views,  when  the  purely 
transcendentally-conceived  God  was  strictly  separated 
from  matter  as  the  seat  of  evil,  the  connection 
through  beings  of  this  intermediate  nature  was 
unavoidable.  That  ethical  notions  were  thereby 
disturbed  is  a  matter  of  course.  Paul  combats  the 
system  as  a  philosophy  which  has  nothing  to  do  with 
Christianity,  and  an  empty  deception  which,  in  spite  of 
its  alleged  support  in  the  Old  Testament,  rests  only 
upon  human  authority.  He  sees  in  it  the  authority 
of  Jesus  Christ,  the  only  mediator  of  salvation,  wronged, 
(ii.  9  fF.),  and  this  was  his  chief  argument  against  it 
{if.  with  1  Cor.  i.-iv.).  He  reproaches  asceticism,  in 
that  while  it  pretends  a  pitiless  discipline  of  the  body, 
it  really  serves  only  to  still  the  desires  of  the  flesh  (ii. 
23),  leads  only  to  haughtiness  (ii.  18),  and  reveals  an 
earthly  character  (iii.  1  fF.).  As  opposed  to  that  he 
wishes  the  Christians  of  Colossag  to  direct  their  minds 
upwards  to  Christ  (iii.  1  f.),  rooted  fast  in  Him,  and 
building  upon  Him  (ii.  7,  cf.  i.  23).  He  reminds 
them  how  alienated  from  God  their  former  heathen 
condition  was  (i.  26  ff".),  and  emphasises  the  separa- 
tion which  Christianity  has  effected  from  the  power 
of  darkness  (i.  12  f.). 

But  in  all  this  we  fail  to  discover  anything  that 

points  to  immoral  motives  in  their  inclination  to  that 

8 


114  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

^  doctrine  :  it  is  a  misguided  moral  effort  similar  to  that 
which  we  found  among  the  Galatians.  Asceticism  is 
the  form  in  which  the  moral  earnestness  engendered 
by  Christianity  will  find  its  first  expression  in  immature 
heathen  converts.  Pure  legalism  in  the  Pharisaic 
sense  took  for  granted  the  whole  Judaism  of  the  time 
as  it  had  developed  through  centuries  of  custom  and 
education.  On  that  account  a  permanent  success  of 
Jewish  propaganda  in  Gentile  Churches  was  extremely 
unlikely.  To  this  legally-regulated  asceticism,  how- 
ever, the  heathenism  of  the  time  was  wholly  predis- 
posed. The  sensuality  which  dominated  its  worship 
demanded  such  a  desensualising  as  a  reaction.  Yet  its 
realisation  always  required  a  religious  moral  impulse. 
The  extent  of  this  impulse  can  be  measured  by 
the  amount  of  energy  spent  upon  asceticism.  Still 
greater  must  the  moral  force  be  which  overcame  this 
tendency  and  guided  the  energy  back  to  the  paths  of 
positive  Christian  morality.  Paul  did  that.  In  the 
light  of  those  ascetic  movements  in  the  Churches,  the 
Apostle's  simple  and  plain  directions,  which  sanctify 
all  natural  relationships  (marriage,  children,  slaves), 
become  particularly  significant.  They  introduced 
the  Christians  of  Phrygia  to  a  quite  different  ideal 
from  that  to  which  some  of  them  aspired.  Paul  does 
not  in  any  way  refuse  to  recognise  the  Spirit :  he  en- 
courages them  to  produce  spiritual  psalms,  songs  and 
hymns  (iii.  16),  and  he  emphasises  his  spiritual  union 
with  them  most  strongly  (ii.  5).  He  lays  no  small 
stress  on  the  Christian's  renunciation  of  the  world ; 
his  "  mortify  therefore  your  members  which  are  upon 
the  earth "  (iii.  5)  makes  perhaps  a  still  greater 
demand  than  the  asceticism  of  his  enemies ;  but  he 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA   MINOR        115 

looks  upon  everything  inwardly,  not  externally :  the 
evil  desires,  not  the  bodily  members,  are  intended. 

In  Colossse  there  were  fewer  immediate  conse- 
quences of  the  agitation  than  in  Galatia ;  the  opposi- 
tion was  evidently  not  so  keen,  for  Paul  himself 
speaks  with  less  sharpness.  Nevertheless  Paul  may 
have  this  opposition  in  mind  when  he  praises  Love 
as  the  bond  of  perfection,  and  exhorts  them,  wliere 
one  has  any  complaint  against  another,  to  follow 
willingly  the  example  of  the  Lord  and  to  forgive 
(iii.  13  f.). 

The  relations  were  less  strained ;  but  it  may  be 
questioned  if  Paul  had  such  a  thoroughgoing  success 
as  in  Galatia.  His  letter  made  an  impression.  That 
is  shown,  as  in  Galatia,  by  its  preservation,  and  also 
by  its  later  elaboration  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians. 
This  fact  is  an  indication  that  an  effective  vindication 
of  the  Apostle's  thoughts  was  considered  necessary. 
We  shall  at  any  rate  see  that  ascetic  tendencies  of 
the  kind  are  continually  cropping  up  in  Asia  JNIinor. 
The  Pharisaic  ideal  of  the  Galatian  agitators  was  an 
exotic  gro^vth,  that  did  not  permit  of  being  long 
cultivated  on  that  soil ;  the  asceticism  and  speculation 
of  the  Phrygian  heretics  was  here,  if  not  native, 
long  acclimatised. 

Special  interest  attaches  to  these  Phrygian  com- 
munities, however,  on  account  of  the  short  Epistle  to 
Philemon  belonging  to  them.  This  epistle  not  only 
affords  us  a  glimpse  of  circumstances  within  a  Christian 
house,  but  also  brings  before  us  the  great  slave- 
question  which  exercised  men's  minds  for  centuries, 
and  shows  us  how  Christianity  approached  the 
problem. 


116  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

In  one  of  the  three  Phrygian  towns — Colossse,  as 
we  may  suppose — lives  Philemon  with  his  wife  Appia  ; 
Archippus  also,  whom  we  have  already  had  occasion 
to  mention,  must  have  belonged  to  the  household. 
Philemon  was  comfortably  circumstanced ;  his  house 
was  entirely  Christian,  and  a  rallying-point  of  the 
Church.  Paul  will  dwell  there  (22)  when  he  comes 
to  Colossse.  Philemon  appears  to  have  been  one  of 
his  own  converts  (19) ;  his  wife  also  is  Christian,  and 
Archippus  occupies  a  leading  position  in  the  Church 
(Col.  iv.  17).  Paul  calls  him  his  fellow-soldier  (2). 
Philemon  is  also  keenly  interested  in  the  spreading 
of  the  Gospel,  as  we  may  gather  from  the  honourable 
designation  "  our  dearly  beloved  and  fellow  labourer  " 
which  Paul  gives  him  (1).  The  Apostle  bears 
excellent  testimony  to  his  faith  in  the  Lord  and  his 
love  towards  all  the  saints  (5).  He  must  have 
devoted  himself  to  suffering  Christians  joyfully  (7). 
In  some  respects  he  might  be  classed  with  Stephanas 
of  Corinth.  People  like  these  show  us  the  higher 
average  of  morality  among  Christians. 

From  this  Christian  a  slave  Onesimus  has  escaped  ; 
we  do  not  know  from  what  cause  or  under  what 
circumstances.  It  almost  seems  not  only  that  he 
had  run  away  from  his  master,  but  that  he  had 
embezzled  a  sum  of  money.  That  any  sort  of  bad 
treatment  drove  him  to  flight  is  quite  improbable. 
Had  it  been  so,  Paul  would  not  have  failed  to  reproach 
Philemon ;  besides,  in  the  letter  to  the  Colossians, 
the  obligation  of  masters  to  be  just  and  reasonable 
to  their  slaves  is  passed  over  in  a  few  words.  Much 
more  probable  is  it  that  the  still  heathen  slave  had 
taken  advantage  of  his  Christian  master's  mildness. 


THE   CHURCHES   OF  ASIxV   MINOR        117 

To  be  sure  he  had  deceived  himself  lamentably  as  to 
what  awaited  him  in  the  outside  world.  The  lot  of 
a  runaway  slave  was  not  an  enviable  one :  the  best 
that  could  happen  to  him  was  to  fall  into  new  slavery. 
If  he  was  recaptured — and  the  magistrates  were 
obliged  to  assist  in  this — the  severest  punishment 
waited  him,  perhaps  a  death  so  cruel  that  many 
voluntarily  presented  themselves  to  fight  with  the 
wild  beasts.  Only  when  he  was  fortunate  enough  to 
secure  the  protection  of  a  friend  of  his  master  might 
he  hope  for  a  better  fate.  That  being  so,  the  con- 
jecture has  some  appearance  of  probability  that  it 
was  no  accident  which  led  Onesimus  to  Paul,  but 
that  he  purposely  sought  out  the  Apostle  in  the  hope 
of  securing  his  influence  with  Philemon.  At  any 
rate  Paul  converted  the  fugitive.  For  some  time  the 
slave  was  with  him  in  prison  and  did  him  personal 
service  {cf.  supra,  p.  94).  Then,  however,  Paul  sends 
him  back  with  a  letter  of  recommendation  to  his 
former  master.  It  is  not  our  business  here  to  show 
the  wonderful  delicacy  with  which  Paul  discharges 
the  task  of  beseeching  Philemon  for  a  favovn-able 
reception  of  the  runaway.  He  indicates,  yet  does 
not  enforce,  his  right  as  an  Apostle  to  command. 
He  desires  to  retain  the  slave  for  his  own  service,  but 
parts  with  him  for  Philemon's  sake.  He  jestingly 
offers  compensation  for  the  wrong  done  by  Onesimus, 
and  then  refers  to  the  immeasurable  debt  of  gratitude 
owed  by  Philemon  to  himself.  He  calls  Onesimus 
his  child  whom  he  has  begotten  in  his  bonds.  He 
plays  upon  the  name,  laying  stress  on  the  change  for 
the  better  which  has  transformed  Onesimus  from 
uselessness  to  usefulness.     The  short  deprivation  of 


118  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

his  services  will  be  amply  compensated  by  eternal 
possession.  What  we  have  to  note  is  that  in  the 
case  of  this  runaway — and,  as  we  may  suppose, 
embezzling — slave,  who,  after  the  ideas  of  right  of 
the  time,  had  nothing  to  expect  but  severe  corporal 
punishment,  perhaps  penal  servitude  and  branding 
for  life,  Paul  prays  for  full  forgiveness  by  his  master, 
/  and  that  in  a  tone  which  clearly  shows  that  he  was 
making  no  vain  request.  The  Apostle's  action  was 
due  not  to  considerations  of  general  humanity,  and 
still  less  to  the  thought  of  a  utilitarian  morality 
which  would  mean  the  quiet  letting-go  of  a  wicked 
slave,  but  to  the  fact  that  the  slave  was  a  Christian, 
and  because  the  master  was  also  a  Christian  he 
could  count  on  success.  The  solidarity  of  the 
Christian  brotherhood  is  the  main  point  here. 

In  the  second  place  we  see  how  the  social  relation 
was  altered.  There  is  indeed  no  suggestion  that  the 
Apostle  set  up  slave-emancipation  as  a  demand.  That 
would  have  entailed  a  social  revolution,  and  within 
the  small  Christian  circle  would  have  been  hardly 
practicable  either  for  the  masters,  whose  property 
might  to  a  large  extent  consist  of  slaves,  or  for  the 
slaves  themselves,  who  were  most  of  them  dependent 
on  the  means  of  subsistence  which  they  received  from 
their  master.  In  the  Empire  even  the  testamentary 
manumissions  usual  in  noble  houses  were  restricted 
in  order  to  prevent  the  growth  of  the  proletariat.  In 
the  case  of  the  Therapeutas  and  similar  conventual 
religious  societies  we  find  a  repudiation  of  slavery, 
the  attempt  to  put  into  practice  the  equal  and  uni- 
versal rights  of  men.  Christianity  did  not  strive  for 
this.      Christians   retain    slaves    and    remain    slaves. 


THE   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA   MINOR         119 

That  continued  into  the  Christian  empire  in  tlie 
fourth  and  fifth  centuries,  and  then  only  gave  place 
to  other  forms  like  bond  service.  Nevertheless 
Christianity  made  an  alteration,  eloquently  attested 
by  this  httle  Epistle  of  Paul.  Though  the  Stoics 
spoke  much  of  the  universal  rights  of  man,  and 
highly  -  educated  slaves  like  Epictetus  declaimed 
upon  the  theme  that  they  only  are  truly  free  who 
make  themselves  inwardly  free,  the  practice  really 
corresponded  with  the  well-known  question  of  the 
Roman  matron,  "  Is  the  slave  a  man  ? "  Mommsen 
says  that,  "  compared  with  those  of  the  Roman  slaves 
the  sum  of  all  the  negro-ills  is  a  drop."  We  must 
remember  however  that  this  statement  holds  good  only 
of  the  crowds  of  land-slaves  on  the  great  estates.  It 
may  be  maintained  that  the  well-known  stories  of 
refined  cruelty  towards  even  the  slaves  who  were  most 
intimate  with  their  masters,  are  few  and,  perhaps,  also 
exaggerated.  It  may  be  pointed  out  that  many 
slaves  were  highly  educated,  and  that  these  usually 
stood  on  a  friendly  footing  with  their  master,  like 
Tiro  with  Cicero,  and  that  the  law  of  the  empire 
began  to  provide  the  slave  with  a  certain  legal  pro- 
tection. Still  the  fact  remains,  he  was  a  thing  with- 
out rights,  given  over  to  the  will  of  his  master.  Even 
liberation  did  not  change  matters  much. 

But  the  Christian  spirit  did,  for  it  saw  in  the  slave 
not  only  the  equal  man  with  equal  rights,  but  the 
beloved  brother.  That  is  the  decisive  element  in  the 
Apostle's  treatment  of  the  question  ;  in  that  this  little 
letter  is  in  complete  agreement  with  the  other  passages 
where  the  author  touches  upon  the  matter.  The  main 
point  is  that  the  relation  becomes  changed  inwardly 


120  THE    PAULINE   CHURCHES 

through  a  new  spirit.  Mutual  love,  demonstrating 
itself  as  willing  obedience  on  the  part  of  the  slave,  and 
as  just,  fair,  mild  treatment  on  the  part  of  the  master, 
creates  within  the  old  legal  form  a  new  moral  system. 
That  it  was  not  lasting,  that  it  exposed  the  slave 
constantly  to  the  occasions  of  a  change  of  master, 
that  in  an  only  one-sided  Christianity  difficulties  of 
every  kind  came  in,  are  considerations  which  do  not 
trouble  the  Apostle.  He  is  not  writing  a  programme, 
but  only  a  little  letter  of  recommendation  for  a 
Christian  slave  to  his  Christian  master,  and  in  it 
he  gives  wonderful  expression  to  the  Christian 
fundamental  thought  of  the  surrender  of  one's 
rights.  Philemon  has  indisputable  right  to  punish 
Onesimus  in  any  way  he  chooses,  and  to  indemnify 
himself  for  the  injury  he  has  suffered.  If  he  re- 
nounces this  right,  he  acts  like  a  Christian. 


THE  PAULINE  CHURCHES. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Church  of  Rome. 

Among  the  Pauline  Churches,  the  Church  of  Rome 
occupies  a  special  place.  It  was  not  founded  by  the 
Apostle ;  in  his  own  opinion  it  does  not  quite  belong 
to  his  field  (xv.  20  fF.,  in  spite  of  i.  15).  At  the 
time  of  writing,  Paul  and  the  Roman  Christians  are 
still  personally  unacquainted,  although  bound  together 
in  the  communion  of  prayer  (i.  10,  xv.  30).  He  had 
indeed  many  acquaintances  in  Rome,  and  his  name 
M^as  often  mentioned  with  respect  among  them.  The 
view  which  would  find  distrust  of  the  Apostle  in  i.  9, 
11  ff.,  and  XV.  22,  is  probably  wrong.  He  purposely 
seeks  out  all  personal  connections,  and  concludes  his 
Epistle  with  the  long  list  of  greetings,  the  numerous 
names  on  which  give  us,  nevertheless,  only  a  very  in- 
complete picture  of  the  composition  of  the  community. 
Was  Paul  at  all  informed  as  to  the  circumstances  of 
this  community,  and  can  his  letter  serve  us  as  a  source 
of  information  on  its  moral  standing  ? 

My  view  is  that  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  is  dis- 
tinguished from  the  other  writings  of  the  Apostle  by^ 
the  fact  that  he  does  not  handle  questions  which  were! 
suggested  to  him  by  the  Church  ;  he  elaborates  trains  i 
of  thought  which  were  at  work  in  himself. 

121 


122  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

It  contains  the  clarified  expression  of  what  was 
inspired  in  the  Apostle's  mind  by  the  Galatian  dis- 
orders. Hastily  committed  to  paper  in  the  Epistle 
to  the  Galatians,  it  was  now  dedicated  in  riper  form 
to  the  Church  of  the  metropolis,  whose  sympathy  the 
Apostle  of  the  Gentiles  was  trying  to  win. 

Nevertheless  it  is  no  abstract  doctrinal  work,  but 
a  real  letter.  Paul  did  not  lose  sight  of  his  readers. 
He  knows  how  to  enter  into  the  particular  require- 
ments of  the  Christians  of  Rome,  and  has  probably 
heard  of  some  of  the  points  discussed  among  them. 
At  the  end  of  the  letter,  where  we  find  the  list  of 
greetings,  we  come  upon  individual  traits  which  can- 
not be  explained  by  the  Apostle's  experiences  in  other 
communities. 

We  know  no  more  about  the  extension  of 
Christianity  in  Rome  than  about  its  beginnings. 
Certainly  the  number  of  the  Roman  Christians  was 
already  not  small.  It  would  seem  that  we  are 
not  entitled  to  speak  of  a  Roman  Church ;  at  least 
Paul  avoids  this  name  (Rom.  i.  7,  Phil.  iv.  22).  As 
the  Jews  of  Rome  lacked  a  unified  organisation,  so 
Christianity  in  the  capital  of  the  world  seems  to 
have  appeared  in  the  form  of  separate  circles,  so- 
called  house-churches  (Rom.  xvi.  5,  xiv.  15).  In 
his  letter  Paul  presupposes,  indeed,  that  these  feel 
themselves  to  be  one.  He  treats  them  (like  his  own 
Churches)  as  consisting  essentially  of  Gentiles.  To 
find  a  Jewish  minority  indicated  in  the  apostrophe 
to  the  Jew  (ii.  17),  is  hazardous.  Naturally  there 
were  Jews  among  the  Christians  of  Rome — certainly 
Priscilla  and  Aquila,  Andronicus  and  Junia,  also  JVIary 
(xvi.  3,  7,  6),  and  probably  many  of  the  others  named. 


THE   CHURCH   OF   ROME  123 

Pilgrims  returning  from  Jerusalem,  Palestinians  emi- 
grating to  Rome,  may  have  spread  the  first  seeds  of 
the  Gospel  in  the  circles  of  the  synagogues  and  among 
the  proselytes  associated  with  them.  There  may 
have  been  people  among  them  who  observed  the 
law  strictly,  but  undoubtedly  there  were  also  people 
of  a  liberal  spirit,  like  Andronicus  and  Junia.  These 
seem  to  have  acquired  particular  importance  in  the 
spread  of  Christianity  in  Rome  ;  they  were  intimately 
connected  Mdth  the  Apostle  Paul,  and  had  on  one 
occasion  even  shared  his  imprisonment.  The  edict 
of  Claudius,  which  drove  the  Jews  out  of  Rome 
(Acts  xviii.  2),  and  was  caused  perhaps  by  the 
tumultuous  scenes  which  the  preaching  of  the 
JNIessiah  come  in  Jesus  called  forth  in  the  syna- 
gogues, may  have  helped  to  bring  about  the  separa- 
tion of  the  proselyte  circle  from  the  mother-soil  of 
the  Jewish  synagogues,  so  that  the  Gentile  element 
gained  the  upper  hand. 

Alongside  of  these,  again,  a  special  circle  of  strict 
Jewish  Christians  may  have  arisen,  just  as  a  special 
synagogue  of  Hebrews  existed  along  with  the  syna- 
gogues of  Greek-speaking  Jews.  The  various  forces 
represented  still  later  among  the  Christian  missionaries 
in  Rome  are  shown  in  Phil.  i.  14  ff.  A  very  keen 
missionary  activity  developed  there  under  the  eyes 
of  the  imprisoned  Apostle.  In  many  cases  indeed  he 
believes  that  the  Jewish  Christians  wish  only  to  anger 
him.  But  he  had  friends  among  the  missionaries,  who 
were  spurred  on  by  love  to  him.  He  had  some  sad 
experiences  to  endure  ;  there  are  many  whom  he  can 
look  upon  only  as  enemies  of  the  cross,  who  follow 
after  only  earthly  desires  (Phil.  iii.  18  f.,  cf.  Rom.  xvi. 


124  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

17  f.)-  But  on  the  whole  he  can  rejoice  in  the 
progress  of  the  Gospel  (Phil  i.  12-18).  In  the 
pretorium  and  in  the  palace  it  has  secured  a  footing 
(Phil.  i.  13,  iv.  22).  We  shall  have  opportunity  later 
to  return  to  the  further  development  of  Christianity 
in  Rome. 

As  the  mission  history  of  our  own  times  often 
enough  teaches  us,  nothing  disturbs  the  moral 
consciousness  of  young  Christian  communities  more 
than  the  adherence  of  professional  preachers  of  the 
Gospel  to  different  principles  when  a  question  of 
practical  conduct  is  raised.  If  that  was  the  case  even 
in  the  Churches  where  Paul's  authority  was  supreme, 
how  much  more  must  it  have  been  so  in  Rome,  which 
lacked  a  dominating  personality  like  his  ?  So  there 
arose  also  inside  the  circle  addressed  by  Paul  certain 
doubts  and  antitheses,  which  were  calculated  to 
disturb  the  Roman  Christians'  consciousness  of  unity. 
That  is  the  one  special  feature,  the  one  concrete  thing 
which  we  hear  about  them.  That  their  faith  is  known 
all  over  the  world  (i.  8)  does  them  great  honour ;  that 
the  news  of  their  obedience,  i.e.,  their  willing  accept- 
ance of  the  Gospel  and  their  subordination  to  its 
moral  demands,  has  reached  everywhere,  gives  the 
Apostle  great  pleasure  (xvi.  19)  ;  but  we  do  not  learn 
much  in  the  way  of  detail  from  these  facts.  The 
particulars  concerning  the  moral  consequences  of 
justification  by  faith,  which  he  gives  in  the  sixth 
chapter,  are  purely  theoretical  and  have  no  connection 
with  Rome.  The  same  holds  good  of  his  spirited 
declaration  about  the  peace  of  God  accompanying 
justification,  and  the  boldness  to  rejoice  in  hope  of  the 
glory  of  God  and  in  tribulation  (v.  1  ff.).     All  that 


THE   CHURCH   OF   ROME  125 

is  spoken  of  the  working  of  the  Holy  Spirit  in  the 
Christian  (v.  5,  viii.  2,  12,  23,  26)  belongs  in  the  first 
place  to  the  Apostle's  own  grateful  confessions.     One 
might  be  tempted  to  consider  also  "  those  divisions  " 
(xvi.  17)  pure  hypotheses  of  the  Apostle.     They  are 
concerned  with  differences  in  regard  to  the  observance 
of  feast  days  and  commandments  touching  food  (xiv. 
5  f.),  exactly  as  we  found  among  the  Galatians.     The 
only  advance  is  that  Paul  mentions  the  limitation  to 
the  eating  of  herbs   (xiv.   2),  and  includes  drinking 
(probably  the  rejection  of  wine  ;  xiv.  17).     We  might 
suppose  that  Paul's  statement  about  the  meat  offered 
to  idols  during   the   dispute   at    Corinth,  "  If  meat 
maketh  my  brother  to  offend,  I  will  eat  no  flesh  while 
the  world  standeth  lest  I  make  my  brother  to  offend  " 
(1  Cor.  viii.   13),  had  called  forth  in  Corinth  itself  a 
vegetarian  movement  which  now  cast  its  shadow  upon 
this  letter  written  from  Corinth.     But  the  detail  with 
which    Paul   handles  this  question,    as  distinguished 
from  all  his  other  exhortations  (xiv.   1-xv.  13),  and 
the  fact  that  he  recurs  to  it  again  and  emphasises  it 
strongly  (xvi.  17  f.),  show  that  in  Rome  the  question 
was  a  burning  one.     It  was  not  quite  like  the  question 
of  meat  offered  to  idols  in  Corinth,  nor  like  the  con- 
flict as  to  the  observance  of  the  law  in  Galatia.     The 
nearest   parallel   to    it   was   the   feeling   in    Colossas. 
Here  as  well  as  there  Essenism  has  been  suggested. 
Only  in  Home  the   matter  seems  to  have  had  still 
less  Jewish  Old  Testament  colouring.     In  connection 
with  this,  Paul  does  not  go  into  the  question  of  the 
law  at  all.     He  even  emphasises  the  significance  of 
the  Old  Testament  as  a  lesson-book  for  Christianity 
(xv.    4),  without   by  a  single  word  guarding  against 


126  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

false  nomistic  exploitation  of  it.  In  Rome  he  re- 
presented the  right  of  the  weak  to  have  their  stand- 
point considered  as  he  had  done  before  in  Corinth, 
while  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Colossians  he  argues 
hotly  against  rules  being  made  in  these  things  at  all. 

To  understand  what  it  was  the  Christians  of  Rome 
were  concerned  about,  we  inust  make  clear  to  our- 
selves the  significance  of  vegetarianism  at  the  time. 
Pythagoreanism  was  revived  and  took  over  the 
repudiation  of  all  animal  food,  as  a  main  rule  of  its 
method  of  life  from  the  Orphic  societies  which 
flourished  in  Egypt  especially.  Once  Empedocles 
had  philosophically  justified  vegetarianism,  and  now 
once  more  the  question  was  eagerly  discussed  in  the 
schools.  Peripatetics,  Stoics,  Epicureans  declared  for 
the  eating  of  flesh,  while  the  teachers  who  were  guided 
by  Plato  maintained  the  opposite  view.  Plutarch  in 
the  second  century,  and  Porphyrins  in  the  third,  wrote 
against  the  use  of  flesh. 

The  theme  was  treated  in  romances.  Appolonius 
of  Tyana  is  described  as  the  saint  of  this  new- 
pythagorean  method  of  life  involving  vegetarianism 
and  abstinence  from  wine,  as  is  also  the  Egyp- 
tian priest  and  prophet  Kalasyris  in  the  Ethiopica 
of  Heliodorus.  Whether  Indian  influences  also 
contributed,  as  the  Gymnosophists  of  Heliodorus' 
Ethiopica  seem  to  suggest,  may  remain  uncertain.  The 
influence  which  the  whole  mode  of  thought  exercised 
on  the  young  Christianity  is  clear.  Its  effect  on 
Judaism  was  less,  especially  in  Palestine  (in  the  case 
of  Essenes,  e.g.,  we  cannot  speak  of  vegetarianism)  ; 
only  the  abhorrence  of  the  unclean  and  of  the  eating 
of  blood  leads  there  under  certain  circumstances  to 


THE   CHURCH   OF   ROME  127 

temporary  abstinence  from  all  eating  of  flesh.  We 
meet  with  a  repudiation  of  it  on  principle,  only  in 
cases  like  the  Philonic  Therapeutse,  who  stood  on 
the  borderland  between  Jewish  and  Greek  life. 
It  is  in  Egypt  that  we  find  it  most  conspicuous 
among  the  Christians  :  it  dominated  the  Gospel  of  the 
Egyptians.  The  majority  of  the  gnostic  masters 
defended  encratism.  The  Christian  tales  glorify 
it  in  the  person  of  the  Apostles.  The  line  between 
Church  and  sect  is  here  a  fluctuating  one,  although 
the  Catholic  theologians  as  a  rule  defend  the  position 
that  all  God's  gifts  can  be  enjoyed  by  Christians  with 
thanksgiving. 

Usually  abstinence  from  flesh  is  combined  with 
abstinence  from  wine.  The  motive  of  this  is  clear. 
Wine  contains  an  intoxicating  element,  something 
which  excites  sensuality.  Less  clear  is  the  motive  of 
vegetarianism.  Dietetics  play  some  part,  but  the 
influence  of  this  is  not  solely  operative  any  more  than 
the  Platonic  philosophers'  physiological  and  psycho- 
logical theories  of  the  enchaining  of  the  soul  in  the 
material  body,  which  is  therefore  to  receive  only  the 
nourishment  absolutely  necessary.  What  Plutarch 
and  Porphyrins  have  to  say  usually  creates  the  impres- 
sion of  having  been  elaborated.  Even  the  thought  of 
the  Universal  Soul  is  hardy  decisive,  where  it  does 
not,  as  in  the  case  of  Empedocles,  adopt  the  definite 
form  of  transmigration  of  souls.  Views  like  these, 
which  directly  affected  human  piety,  the  demoniacal 
mystery  with  which  the  act  of  procreation  was 
surrounded  by  the  ancients,  who  either  deified  it  or 
held  it  accursed,  and  finally  the  universal  tendency 
to    asceticism    and    renunciation,    must    have    been 


128  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

determinative  for  the  majority.  The  last  point  of 
view  certainly  formed  the  Christian  motive.  Oc- 
casionally we  meet  with  a  limitation  to  the  eating 
of  plants  as  a  grade  of  fasting  and  of  penance. 

Thus  it  may  have  happened  in  Rome  also,  that 
zealous  maintainers  of  the  strict  moral  character  of 
Christianity  demanded  the  renunciation  of  flesh  and 
of  wine.  The  Christian  hope,  with  its  thought  of 
eternity,  had  to  superficial  observers  a  certain  re- 
semblance to  the  Platonic  idea. 

When,  in  addition  to  this,  we  meet  with  a  prefer- 
ence among  Roman  Christians  for  special  days,  i.e., 
evidently  the  observance  of  the  Jewish  Sabbath,  we 
shall  be  little  surprised.  The  satirists  teach  us  clearly 
the  superstitious  respect  which  this  custom  of  the 
otherwise  despised  Jews  enjoyed  in  all  circles  of 
Roman  society.  How  could  the  repute  in  which 
it  was  held  fail  to  increase,  when  a  direct  union  was 
formed  with  a  society  in  which  the  sacred  law  of  the 
Jews  was  the  normative  book  ?  An  inner  connection 
need  not  have  existed  between  the  observance  of  the 
Sabbath  and  abstinence  from  flesh,  although  we  may 
suppose  the  same  people  observed  both.  That  these 
were  Jewish  Christians  is  nowhere  indicated,  and 
Judaists  are,  in  a  case  of  the  kind,  directly  excluded. 

Certainly  those  who  observed  the  Sabbath  and  re- 
nounced flesh  considered  themselves  better  Chris- 
tians. In  their  judgment  the  others  were  lacking  in 
proper  moral  earnestness.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
latter  considered  the  abstinence  of  the  former  a  weak- 
ness ;  with  a  right  understanding  of  the  Gospel,  they 
maintained  freedom  from  Sabbath  regulations,  and 
the   right   to   partake   of  every    kind    of  food    with 


THE    CHURCH   OF   ROME  129 

thanks  to  God.  Therein  lay  the  difference  which 
endangered  brotherly  love.  When  we  look  more 
closely,  Paul  appears  to  presuppose  people  of  the 
latter  kind  in  the  circle  to  which  his  letter  first 
goes,  and  he  designates  them  briefly,  as  in  Corinth, 
the  strong.  The  weak  may  have  belonged,  to  some 
extent,  to  other  circles.  But  Paul  insists  that  the 
unity  of  Christian  brotherhood  shall  be  maintained, 
even  at  the  sacrifice  of  knowledge  and  liberty,  and 
above  all  at  the  expense  of  odious  and  damaging 
judgment. 

In  Rome  it  was  of  great  importance  that  the 
Christians  gave  no  external  offence.  Paul  enters 
vividly  into  the  circumstances  of  Rome,  where  the 
increasing  size  of  the  proletariat  made  the  police 
power  much  greater,  and  the  suspicious  method  of 
the  imperial  government  made  the  supervision  much 
more  strict. 

The  Jews,  whom  the  imperial  government  had  con- 
sistently favoured  since  the  time  of  Cfpsar,  had  re- 
cently had  to  pay  for  noisy  disturbances  in  and  around 
their  synagogues,  with  expulsion  ft'om  the  city.  Still 
more  easily  could  the  Christians  be  made  to  undergo 
similar  and  still  worse  things,  if  they  made  them- 
selves in  any  way  unpleasantly  conspicuous.  The 
July  days  of  the  year  64,  the  burning  of  the  town 
and  the  persecution  of  the  Christians  in  consequence, 
showed  clearly  that  only  a  suspicion  was  needed  to 
set  extreme  measures  in  motion  against  them.  They 
were  abandoned  as  outlaws  to  all  sorts  of  violence. 
This  made  it  the  more  important  that  on  their  part 
they  should  avoid  every  suspicion,  and  that  they 
should   be  aware  of  the  duty  of  implicit  obedience 

9 


130  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

to  the  magistrates.  It  is  very  possible  that  this  was 
not  everywhere  the  case,  but  that  here  and  there 
ideas  of  opposition  were  excited.  As  in  Thessalonica 
enthusiasm  called  forth  a  distaste  for  labour,  so  in 
other  quarters  it  might  give  rise  to  revolutionary 
notions.  In  these  circles,  usually  composed  of  in- 
significant people  like  freedmen  and  slaves,  the  fanatic 
idea  that  they  were  called  to  play  a  leading  political 
role  in  the  world,  and  in  some  way  or  other 
to  help  to  hasten  the  coming  of  God's  kingdom 
on  earth,  could  easily  be  fostered  by  the  influence 
of  the  prophets  and  the  apocalyptic  literature. 
Here  in  Rome,  "  the  sight  of  the  might  which 
ruled  the  world  compelled  them  to  reflect  upon  its 
nature  and  its  divine  right,"  and  Christianity  offered 
impulse  enough  to  deny  the  latter.  It  may  be  due 
to  this  that  they  were  charged  with  hatred  of 
humanity.  In  the  days  of  Nero,  on  the  admission 
of  Tacitus  himself,  they  were  not  the  incendiaries 
they  were  given  out  to  be  (Ann.  xv.  44),  and  the 
alleged  crimes  which  had  made  them  hated  among 
the  people  were  evidently  wicked  calumnies  like 
those  against  which,  at  a  later  time,  the  apologists 
had  to  defend  themselves.  Unfortunately  we  know 
nothing  definite  about  the  sentiments  of  the  Chris- 
tians of  Rome,  and  must  beware  of  concluding  from 
Paul's  quite  general  exhortations  that  there  were 
special  defects  in  Rome.  Paul  does  indicate  some- 
thing which  might  easily  lead  to  conflict — the  taxes 
and  customs. 

The  Roman  citizen  was  free  from  taxes :  the 
provincial  was  not.  How  it  was  with  the  settlers  in 
Rome,  who  were  not  citizens,  we  do  not  know.     After 


THE    CHURCH   OF   ROME  131 

the  year  70,  every  Jew  had  to  pay  into  the  Roman 
treasury  the  old  temple-tax  of  a  didrachmon ;  there 
is  no  evidence  of  a  taxation  of  Jews  in  Rome  during 
the  Julian-Claudian  period. 

Again,  it  is  possible  to  think  of  the  conflicts  which 
might  arise  from  the  demands  for  these  taxes  from 
Christians,  as  Jews  or  adherents  of  the  synagogue. 
But  Paul  had  evidently  in  mind  rather  the  circum- 
stances of  his  provincial  Churches.  Customs  on 
goods  imported  were  exacted  in  Rome,  as  well  as  in 
the  other  revenue  districts  of  the  empire.  That  the 
Christians  were  in  any  way  specially  disinclined  to 
pay  these  is  hardly  credible.  The  complaints  about 
duties  of  this  kind  were  naturally  quite  general.  It 
is  a  criterion  of  the  moral  spirit  of  Christianity,  that 
instead  of  complaining,  it  required  its  followers  to 
pay  readily  all  such  due  claims.  And  this  is  all  the 
more  remarkable,  as  the  Christians  were  to  a  certain 
extent  entitled  to  feel  themselves  the  citizens  of 
another  higher  kingdom,  free  from  all  earthly 
burdens  {cf.  Matt.  xvii.  25  f).  Every  inner  bond 
which  would  have  united  them  to  the  authorities  was 
wanting.  Paul  himself  adopted  no  positive  attitude 
to  the  state.  He  even  sought  to  avert  every  influ- 
ence on  his  Churches,  e.g.,  in  legal  cases ;  far  less 
did  he  entertain  any  idea  of  making  the  Christians 
a  power  in  it.  His  conduct  reveals  no  limited 
vision,  but  a  magnificent  clearness  and  consciousness 
of  aim. 

What  else  Paul  mentions  in  these  last  chapters 
of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  has  still  less  relation 
to  the  special  circumstances  of  Rome.  We  have 
already    spoken    of  this    section   as    an   example    of 


132  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

the  moral  education  of  the  communities  by  the 
'^  Apostle.  It  is  possible,  at  the  same  time,  to  see  in  it 
a  precipitate  of  the  experience  which  he  had  gained 
in  his  Greek-Asia  Minor  communities.  It  is  worth 
while  to  glance  again  at  chapters  xii.-xvi.  to  find  out 
the  points  which  Paul  considers  worth  mentioning, 
and  lays  his  finger  upon.  These  will  be  the  defects 
which  he  has  come  most  in  contact  witli. 

In  the  first  place  there  are  the  sins  of  the  flesh, 
which  he  has  everywhere  to  combat  as  the  chief  evil, 
especially  in  Corinth.  There  is  sometimes  no  trace 
of  the  knowledge  that  the  body  of  the  Christian 
should  be  a  consecrated  instrument,  a  temple  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  ^xii.  1).  With  unchastity  are  very  closely 
/  associated  excesses  in  eating  and  drinking  (xiii. 
I  13).  Next  come  selfishness  and  pride,  which  do  not 
permit  the  consciousness  of  unity  and  mutual  obliga- 
tion to  develop  (xii.  3  ff.,  xiii.  13),  and  which  every- 
where give  occasion  to  disorder,  disputes,  and  con- 
tentions. 

/  Paul  already  knows  the  lukewarmness,  the  sloth- 
fulness  which  is  unable  to  hope  joyfully,  to  suffer 
patiently,  and  to  continue  in  prayer  (xii.  11  f.).  In 
particular,  however,  he  has  to  quicken  the  love,  which 
embraces  even  the  strange  brother,  which  repays  the 
enemy  with  blessing  instead  of  curse,  which  shares 
the  joy  and  suffering  of  others,  and  does  not 
withdraw  haughtily  into  itself  We  see  that  the 
great  rule  of  the  giving-up  of  all  revenge  needs 
alM^ays  to  be  laid  anew  to  the  heart  of  the  Churches, 
and  we  see  in  the  closing  thought,  "  Be  not  overcome 
of  evil,  but  overcome  evil  with  good,"  all  the  great- 
ness  of    this    Christian   morality,    which,    certain   of 


THE   CHURCH   OF  ROME  133 

victory,  seeks  its  proof  in  fighting,  not  in  flight. 
It  can  do  this  because  its  first  and  only  principle  is 
love  (xiii.  8  ff.),  a  love  which  surrenders  its  own 
freedom  and  right  for  a  brother's  sake  (xiv.  1-xv.  7). 
The  state  of  owing  no  man  anything,  which  was 
considered  by  the  heathen  the  condition  of  happiness, 
was  here  held  to  be  obligatory  in  a  much  deeper 
sense :  the  debt  of  love  is  unending. 

Paul  here  enforces  the  grandest  thoughts  of  the 
Sermon  on  the  JMount.  The  warnings  against  heathen 
vices  assume  no  prominence.  It  is  equally  honourable 
for  the  Roman  Christians  and  for  his  other  Churches 
that  he  gives  no  more  detailed  exhortations.  The 
dark  picture  of  heathendom,  as  he  drew  it  in  the 
first  chapter,  lies  behind  them.  He  takes  it  for 
granted  that  the  Christian  consciousness  is  strong 
enough  among  them  to  effect  a  complete  break  with 
the  former  method  of  life  (xii.  2,  xiii.  12). 

Such  is  the  picture  of  the  Pauline  Churches,  very 
incomplete  it  is  true — our  sources  offer  no  more — 
yet  rich  enough  to  admit  of  an  answer  to  the  question, 
"  To  what  extent  did  Christianity  become  effective 
as  moral  power  ?  " 

To  reach  the  right  standpoint  we  must  put 
ourselves  into  the  conditions  that  Paul  met  with. 
This  we  can  best  do  from  the  picture  which 
the  Apostle  himself  gives  of  the  decadence  of 
heathendom  (Rom.  i.  21  ff.) :  "Because  that,  when 
they  knew  God,  they  glorified  him  not  as  God, 
neither  were  thankful ;  but  became  vain  in  their 
imaginations  and  their  foolish  heart  was  darkened. 
Professing  themselves  to  be  wise,  they  became  fools, 
and  changed  the  glory  of  the  uncorruptible  God  into 


134  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

an  image  made  like  to  corruptible  man,  and  to  birds, 
and  four-footed  beasts,  and  creeping  things.  Where- 
fore God  also  gave  them  up  to  uncleanness  through 
the  lusts  of  their  own  hearts,  to  dishonour  their  own 
bodies,  between  themselves :  who  exchanged  the 
truth  of  God  into  a  lie  and  worshipped  and  served 
the  creature  rather  than  the  Creator  (Who  is  blessed 
for  ever.     Amen). 

"  For  this  cause  God  gave  them  up  unto  vile 
passions ;  for  their  women  changed  the  natural  use 
into  that  which  is  against  nature ;  and  likewise  also 
the  men,  leaving  the  natural  use  of  the  women, 
burned  in  their  lust  one  toward  another,  men  with 
men  working  unseemliness,  and  receiving  in  them- 
selves that  recompense  of  their  error  which  was  due. 
And  even  as  they  refused  to  have  God  in  their 
knowledge,  God  gave  them  up  unto  a  reprobate 
mind  to  do  those  things  which  are  not  fitting  ;  being 
filled  with  all  unrighteousness,  wickedness,  covetous- 
ness,  maliciousness ;  full  of  envy,  murder,  strife, 
deceit,  malignity,  whisperers,  backbiters,  hateful  to 
God,  insolent,  haughty,  boastful,  inventors  of  evil 
things,  disobedient  to  parents,  without  understanding, 
covenant  breakers,  without  natural  affection,  un- 
merciful ;  who  knowing  the  ordinance  of  God,  that 
they  which  practise  such  things  are  worthy  of  death, 
not  only  do  the  same,  but  consent  with  them  that 
practise  them."  Although  this  gradual  demoralisation 
involving  the  religious  and  the  moral  consciousness 
may  be  called  a  philosophical  presentation  of  history, 
yet  how  much  truth  there  is  in  it.  Although  the 
colours  of  the  moral  picture  are  purposely  chosen  of 
a  sombre  tone,  it  was  not  a  pessimism  which  despised 


THE   CHURCH   OF   ROME  135 

mankind  that  guided  the  brush,  but  the  moral  in- 
dignation of  a  man  whose  whole  heart  was  given  to  the 
task  of  raising  the  Gentile  world  from  this  slough  of  sin 
and  vice.  The  pictin-e  which  he  paints  is  the  result 
of  actual  obser\'ation ;  Corinth  in  especial  gave  him 
material  enough,  and  what  we  discover  from  ancient 
sources  teaches  us  that  this  description  is  perhaps 
one-sided,  but  right  in  the  main.  Humanity  had 
really  lost  sound  moral  judgment ;  sin  was  not  only 
committed,  but  approved  and  glorified.  The  sense  of 
sin  was  lost,  and  philosophy  even  set  herself  to  cover 
wicked  practice  by  more  wicked  theory.  Individual 
moral  teachers  may  have  striven  after  something 
better ;  in  the  upper  grades  of  society  a  fine  tone 
may  have  concealed  much  ;  in  the  country  and  remote 
small  towns  the  ancient  honour  may  have  been  still 
to  some  extent  preserved,  though  even  the  pastorals  of 
Longus  were  affected  by  the  demoralisation  insepar- 
able from  the  ci^  ilisation  of  the  time.  For  the  circles 
in  which  Paul  worked  and  from  which  he  gathered 
his  churches  together,  he  was  unquestionably  right. 
What  we  have  observed  in  these  young  churches  only 
confirms  what  was  said  of  the  non-Christian  world, 
for  it  is  the  aftermath  of  ancient  habit. 

For  the  rest,  however,  the  churches  shine  as  lights 
in  the  world  (Phil.  ii.  15),  however  little  the  Apostle 
thought  or  we  may  think  of  idealising  them.  The 
time  is  long  past  when  it  was  thought  necessary  to 
remove  every  stain  and  shadow  from  the  ideal  picture 
of  Christianity  in  apostolic  communities.  Historical 
reahty  here  also  asserted  itself  AVe  see  now  that 
even  in  the  mighty  throes  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  in 
those  days  things  went  on  still  in  a  very  human  way, 


136  THE   PAULINE   CHURCHES 

and  that  the  law  of  growth,  which  the  Lord  Himself 
recognised  as  holding  also  for  the  kingdom  of  God, 
has  here  been  confirmed.  Not  complete  Christian 
communities  with  perfect  knowledge  and  proved  in 
every  detail  fell  to  the  Apostle  in  his  mission- 
preaching,  but  with  painful  labour  on  individuals 
and  communities,  he  had  slowly  to  train  the  small 
groups  of  those  laid  hold  of  by  the  Gospel  into 
Christian  Churches. 

Everywhere  in  these  Pauline  Churches  we  meet 
with  youthful  immaturity.  This  is  least  so  where 
we  observe  a  Church  after  lengthy  de\"elopment,  as 
in  the  Epistle  to  the  Philippians.  The  sensuality 
of  the  Corinthians,  the  excessive  spirituality  of  the 
Thessalonians,  the  hasty  fall  to  every  new  doctrine 
which  we  observed  in  Corinth  and  in  Galatia  and 
Phrygia  —  all  are  but  signs  of  immaturity.  Men 
were  only  half-conscious  of  their  own  dependence. 
They  adhered  to  authorities,  whether  Paul  and 
Apollos,  or  the  Jewish  agitators. 

It  is  not  so  much  weakness  as  immaturity  that 
we  observe,  immaturity  with  which  a  superabundant 
energy,  the  sign  of  youthfulness,  is  bound  up.  All 
the  Corinthians'  boasting  of  liberty,  their  parties,  and 
similar  facts  in  the  other  Churches,  are  outflows  of 
this  unrestrained  and  partly  misguided  power.  But 
this  power  reveals  itself  also  in  good :  in  the  joy  of 
sacrifice,  in  the  feeling  of  community,  especially,  in* 
the  case  of  the  Macedonians,  in  confidence  of  faith 
and  in  readiness  to  suffer. 

And  lastly  there  is  an  expression  of  this  power  also 
in  that  moral  earnestness,  which  we  occasionally  found 
described  as  weakness,  the  anxiety  concerning  meat 


THE   CHURCH    OF   ROME  137 

offered  to  idols,  eating  of  flesh  and  drinking  of  wine, 
and  even  avoidance  of  marriage.  There  is  therein  a 
power  of  renunciation,  and  yet  it  is  still  a  weakness. 
It  is  as  much  a  residuum  of  the  ancient  mode  of 
thought  as  the  traces  of  excess  in  the  different 
domains  of  the  sensual  life.  The  flesh  is  not  over- 
come by  denying  the  senses,  but  by  the  Spirit's 
sanctifying  power. 

To  sum  up.  It  is  astonishing  what  Christianity  in' 
a  relatively  short  time  made  out  of  these  motley  and  | 
confused  heathen  groups  ;  earnest  men  working  out 
their  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling,  saints  fully 
aware  of  the  moral  tasks  of  their  consecration.  If 
their  judgment  was  often  immature,  their  goodwill 
and  vigour  were  great ;  and,  besides,  there  stood  by 
them  the  Apostle  and  his  assistants  training  and 
advisinir  them.  We  never  see  more  than  isolated 
sections  of  their  development,  but  our  main  impres- 
sion cannot  fail  to  be  that  the  Churches  were  making 
great  progress. 


Book  II. 


JEWISH  CHRISTENDOM. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Primitive  Church^ — The  Church 
or  Jerusalem. 

We  break  quite  different  ground  when  we  turn  to 
the  Jewish  Christian  Churches  of  Palestine.  The 
Jews,  too,  were  men,  subject  to  the  same  desires  and 
impulses  as  others.  In  the  Gospel  we  meet  with  the 
public  prostitute  and  the  adulterous  woman.  In  His 
parables  the  Lord  pictures  the  rich  miser  and  the 
wanton  spendthrift,  the  unfaithful  steward  and  the 
deceitful  servant,  the  thief  and  the  unjust  judge. 
The  so-called  Testaments  of  the  Twelve  Patriarchs 
chastise  the  spirit  of  fornication,  of  greed,  of  anger, 
of  coquetry,  of  pride,  of  lying  and  deceit  in  the 
twelve  tribes.  The  very  worst  was  said  even  of  the 
priests  (Levi.  xvii.).  While  he  fully  acknowledges 
their  zeal  for  righteousness  (Rom.  x.  2  f.),  Paul 
reproaches  his  countrymen  with  the  transgression  of 
every  commandment,  especially  the  seventh  and  the 
eighth  (Rom.  ii.  21  f ).  Following  after  the  law  of 
righteousness,  Israel  did  not  attain  to  that  law  (Rom. 

138 


THE   PRIMITIVE   CHURCH  139 

ix.  31).  Here,  then,  there  is  no  distinction  between 
Jews  and  others.  All  are  sinners  (Rom.  iii.  9,  22). 
In  Israel  the  general  conditions  of  morality  were 
similar  to  those  among  the  peoples  round  about. 

And  yet  it  makes  a  great  difference  that  the  Jews  j 
had  long  lived  under  the  civilising  influence  of  their  | 
divine  law.  They  were  protected  from  the  danger 
of  lapsing  into  sensuality.  The  days  of  Antiochus 
Epiphanes,  when  paganism  seemed  to  enter  Jerusalem 
in  the  nakedness  of  its  sins  and  vices,  were  past,  since 
the  JNIaccabees  had  again  won  for  the  law  absolute 
supremacy.  With  constant  and  increasing  zeal,  the 
scribes  sought  to  protect  the  people  by  a  fence  of  law. 
The  ideal  was  the  Pharisee  who  separates  himself 
entirely  from  all  heathen  or  even  semi-heathen  im-  I 
purity.  But  the  very  word  Pharisee  is  sufficient  to 
bring  before  us  at  once  the  other  danger  of  this  moral 
ideal.  The  Pharisee  of  the  Gospel  we  know  well 
enough  as  the  type  of  pride,  lovelessness,  insincerity, 
and  hypocrisy.  And  not  only  the  Pharisee,  but  the 
whole  Jewish  piety  which  was  demanded  by  the 
scribes  of  the  time  was  in  conflict  with  that  of  the 
I^ord  :  their  externality,  which  almost  stifled  the  moral 
sentiment ;  their  casuistry,  which  in  the  multitude  of 
trifling  pedantries  neglected  the  main  commandment 
of  love,  and  the  hypocritical  artificiality  with  which 
they  evaded  the  law  while  observing  all  its  precepts. 

Naturally  there  were  in  Israel  other  currents  of 
thought  as  well.  The  aristocratic  worldlings  and 
politicians  known  to  us  as  Sadducees,  who  under  the 
pretence  of  conservatism  repudiated  the  best  impulses 
of  the  traditional  religion  and  did  not  scruple  to  meet 
with  heathen  rulers  on  equal  terms,  hardly  concern  us 


140  JEWISH    CHRISTENDOM 

at  all ;  no  more  do  the  Essenes,  who  are  not  mentioned 
in  the  Gospel.  These  latter  lived  for  the  most  part  in 
monastic  seclusion  in  the  district  east  of  the  Jordan, 
and,  probably  not  uninfluenced  by  the  asceticism 
which  dominated  the  world  of  the  time,  sought  to 
realise  the  negative  side  of  Pharisaism  to  the  utmost. 
Yet  we  may  suppose  that  here  and  there  in  the  land 
there  were  groups  of  pious  people,  who  still  had 
some  understanding  of  the  greatness  of  the  moral 
view  of  the  prophet.  "  He  hath  shewed  thee,  O  man, 
what  is  good ;  and  what  doth  the  Lord  require  of 
thee,  but  to  do  justly,  and  to  love  mercy,  and  to 
walk  humbly  with  thy  God  "  (Micah  vi.  8)  ;  "I  will 
have  mercy  and  not  sacrifice  "  (Hosea  vi.  6,  Matt. 
ix.  13).  These  formed  the  circles  in  which  Christ's 
preaching  had  most  success.  But  here,  too,  the  law 
was  the  highest  aim  in  life.  The  question,  "  What 
was  God  doing  before  he  created  the  world  ? "  met 
with  the  answer,  "  Sitting  and  studying  the  law,"  and 
though  this  may  indicate  a  deification  of  legal 
learning,  nevertheless  the  ideal  of  every  pious  Jew 
was  to  find  his  delight  in  the  law  of  the  Lord,  and  to 
meditate  therein  day  and  night  (Ps.  i.  2,  cxix.  27 ;  cf. 
Test.  XII.  patr.,  Levi,  xiii.,  Rom.  ii.  17  ff.). 

Thus  from  the  beginning  a  quite  different  turn  was 
given  to  Christian  morality  on  this  ground,  and  a 
much  more  precise  character  was  stamped  on  it.  We 
can  realise  this  when  we  read  the  description  of  the 
really  pious  in  Ps.  xv.,  or  Job's  self-defence  (chap. 
xxxi.),  with  which  the  characteristics  of  the  Patriarchs 
in  their  "  Testaments "  are  in  complete  agreement. 
Still  more  detailed  is  "  The  Two  Ways,"  soon  appro- 
priated   by    Christianity,    but    originally    a    Jewish 


THE    PRIMITIVE    CHURCH  141 

catechism,  which  adds  to  the  coiiimandnieuts  of  the 
Decalogue  the  extract  of  Israel's  experience  con- 
tained in  the  wisdom-literature.  The  command- 
ments are  indeed  most  of  them  negative,  but  they  ^ 
show  the  great  heinousness  which  was  attached  to 
sins  of  thought.  Great  weight  was  laid  on  duties] 
towards  the  community.  Beneficence  is  the  crown 
of  morality.  In  a  Jewish  Apocalypse  (SteindorfF, 
The  Ajjocalypsc  of  Ellas,  p.  152)  we  even  find 
neglect  of  charity  considered  the  only  sin  that  matters,! 
just  as  in  the  parable  of  Jesus  (Matt.  xxv.  41  fF.). 
Close  beside  it,  however,  we  find  purely  external  1 
precepts  like  the  strict  keeping  of  fast-days  and 
hours  of  prayer.  The  moral  consciousness  has  not 
yet  reached  a  clear  separation  between  what  is 
essential  and  what  is  not. 

Here  lies  the  new  element  contributed  by  the 
Gospel.  It  can  be  sought  only  in  the  subordination 
of  all  externalities.  Relation  to  the  person  of  Christ 
and  the  certainty  of  God's  fatherly  grace  supplied  the 
power  of  realization. 

If  we  wish  to  appreciate  justly  the  earliest  Christian 
Church  which  gathered  at  the  beginning  in  Jerusalem 
round  the  Twelve,  we  must  think  of  all  its  members 
as  pious  Jews.  The  certainty  that  the  Messiah  had 
appeared  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  and  that  though 
carried  away  to  Heaven  for  a  short  space  He  would 
come  again  very  soon  to  set  up  the  kingdom  of  God 
(Acts  iii.  21),  only  impelled  them  to  redouble  their 
pious  zeal  and  strive  after  the  realisation  of  the 
Jewish  ideal  of  piety.  Their  attitude  towards  the 
law  was  quite  naive.  That  Jesus  set  man  above 
the  Sabbath,   and  love  above  all  ceremonial  duties,  ' 


142  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

abolished  these  institutions  just  as  Uttle  as  the  similar 
prophetic  utterances  which  were  recognised  alongside 
of  the  law  as  holy  and  divine  abolished  it.  Jesus' 
exposition  of  the  law  was  only  fulfilment,  not  dissolu- 
tion. He  deepened  the  comprehensions  of  the  com- 
mandments and  gave  them  a  more  profound  inward 
.  j  content.  They  remained  binding,  and  the  whole 
law  with  them.  It  was  a  simple  matter,  of  course, 
that  Jesus'  disciples,  like  all  pious  Jews,  offered  the 
ordinary  prayers,  observed  the  Sabbath,  shared  the 
pilgrimages,  frequented  the  Temple,  and  brought 
their  offering  there.  In  their  worship  and  in  every 
relationship  they  were  faithful  to  the  law.  Their 
Christianity,  if  we  may  speak  here  of  such  a  thing, 
and  their  belief  in  the  Messiah,  found  expression  in 
increased  devotion  to  duty  and  in  redoubled  zeal. 

From  the  very  outset,  however,  the  disciples  of 
Jesus  formed  a  community,  which,  bearing  in  the 
first  instance  a  family  character  and  later  always 
growing,  was  knit  closely  together  and  was  to  a 
certain  extent  outwardly  distinct.  In  this  narrow 
circle  customs  were  developed,  partly,  it  is  true, 
unconsciously,  which  bore  in  them  the  seed  of  new 
formations.  In  Acts  ii.  42  it  is  said  that  those  who 
were  received  into  communion  through  baptism — that 
is,  through  a  purificatory  bath — continued  steadfastly 
in  the  Apostles'  doctrine  and  fellowship  and  in  breaking 
of  bread  and  in  prayers.  It  is  a  way  of  forming  a 
communion  that  was  not  quite  unheard  of  in  the 
Israel  of  the  time.  The  best  analogy  is  offered  by 
the  common  houses  of  the  Essenes.  But  it  is  not 
at  all  necessary  to  adopt  Essenic  influence  in  order 
to   explain  the   development   of  Christian  forms   of 


,  THE   CHURCH    OF   JERUSALEM  143 

that  kind.     For  these  lack  above  all  the  main  feature 
of  Essenism — monastic  communism. 

It  is  tme  we  are  accustomed  to  associate  with  the 
early  Christian  Church  the  thought  of  community 
of  goods.  And  it  ought  not  to  be  denied  that  in 
the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  it  is  to  be  fovmd.  But  it 
is  clearly  shown  to  be  only  one  of  the  features  with 
which  the  author  idealises  the  picture  of  the  early 
Church.  Luke  himself,  like  many  of  his  contem-\ 
poraries,  was  strongly  inclined  to  communism.  Tlie 
faint  traces  of  it  which  he  brought  into  his  Gospel 
are  still  more  distinct  in  the  Acts.  But  the  facts 
which  he  himself  reports  contradict  it.  The  same 
idealising  process  took  place  ainong  the  Pythagoreans. 
While  all  older  sources  presuppose  private  possessions, 
the  later  Neo-Pythagoreans,  whom  we  may  call  con- 
temporaries of  Luke,  maintain  that  Pythagoras  intro- 
duced community  of  goods  from  the  very  beginning. 
The  real  truth  is  that  an  active  spirit  of  great  mutual 
helpfulness  did  reveal  itself,  kolvu  tu  twv  (plXoov.  But 
it  is  wrong  to  say  there  was  a  rule  demanding  the 
surrender  of  private  property  for  the  common  good. 
It  was  exactly  the  same  with  the  early  Church. 
Brotherly  love  knew  no  limits ;  no  one  said,  as  Luke 
very  properly  describes  the  state  of  affairs,  that  any- 
thing was  his  own :  they  had  everything  in  common 
(Acts  iv.  32).  The  delight  in  giving  went  in  some 
cases  so  far  that  property  was  sold,  and  the  proceeds 
placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  community.  This  was 
done  by  Barnabas  (iv.  36  f.),  and  by  Ananias  and 
Sapphira,  who  coveted  his  fame  (v.  1  ff.).  These, 
however,  were  exceptional  cases  and  attracted  par- 
ticular attention.     There  was  no  rule  on  the  point. 


144  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

We  cannot  speak  of  any  obligation  to  surrender 
private  property  in  behoof  of  the  community  such 
as  Luke  describes. 

The  hfe  of  these  first  Christians  must  have  borne 
a  markedly  social,  even  family  character,  which  is  ex- 
pressed in  their  favourite  designation  of  one  another 
as  brethren.  They  assembled  regularly  and  probably 
had  frequent  common  meals.  In  particular  the  poor 
were  cared  for.  That  there  was  much  poverty  in  the 
Church  is  shown  by  various  circumstances,  e.g.,  this 
very  "daily  ministration"  (Acts  vi.  1).  It  is  also 
rendered  likelier  by  the  consideration  that  in  the 
understanding  between  Paul  and  the  authorities  at 
Jerusalem  the  latter  deemed  it  necessary  to  seek 
assistance  from  the  Gentile  Churches  of  the  former. 
Poverty  may  have  been  due  partly  to  the  Galileans 
having  abandoned  their  possessions  when  they 
migrated  to  Jerusalem,  and  partly  to  their  having 
given  up  work,  and  gifted  away  their  possessions 
in  their  first  enthusiasm.  Still  there  were  Christians 
of  means  in  the  early  Church.  Mary,  the  mother 
of  John  Mark,  possessed  a  fine  house  and  servants 
(xii.  12).  We  learn,  too,  that  there  were  men-  and 
maid-servants  belonging  to  the  Church  of  believers 
{cf.  ii.  18).  The  joy  of  the  doorkeeper  Rhoda  at 
the  unexpected  appearance  of  Peter  shows  how 
closely  this  slave  reckoned  herself  to  belong  to  the 
family.  Differences  of  position  were  levelled  by  the 
common  faith.  The  women,  too,  enjoyed  complete 
recognition  as  members  of  the  Church,  or,  better,  of 
the  Family  {cf.  ii.  17),  e.g.,  Mary,  the  mother  of  the 
Lord  (i.  14)  and  the  Mary  just  named.  Sapphira 
also  appears  as  an  independent  member  along  with 


THE   CHURCH   OF  JERUSALEM  145 

her  husband  (v.  7  ff.)-  Peter  is  the  head  of  the 
family,  and  the  Twelve  stand  by  him.  Otherwise 
there  is  a  complete  lack  of  organisation.  When 
there  was  anything  to  be  done,  as,  e.g.^  in  the 
burial  of  a  fellow-member,  the  younger  members  of 
the  circle  offered  their  services  voluntarily  (v.  6,  10, 
viii.  2). 

In  the  course  of  time,  however,  the  family  idea 
was  found  insufficient.  A  community  of  from  three 
to  five  thousand  is  a  school,  a  sect,  an  order,  like  other 
Jewish  ones.  Thus  we  find  the  Christians  designated 
as  disciples,  men  "of  the  way"  (Acts  ix.  2,  xxiv.  14), 
and  saints.  The  last,  which  is  simply  a  term  like 
"  separate  "  (Pharisee)  and  "  pious  "  (Essene),  is  applied 
by  Paul  specially  to  the  Church  of  Jerusalem,  and 
indicates  that  the  Old  Testament  ideal  of  a  people 
holy  to  God  was  to  be  realised  within  it. 

We  may  gather  also  from  the  report  of  the  first 

years  of  the  early  Church  given  in  Acts  that  a  great  ^ 

enthusiasm  filled  the  young  and  constantly-increasing 

Church,  and  the  joy  of  confessing  Jesus  continued 

even  in  the  midst  of  suffering.     For  the  rest,  we  are 

not  entitled  to  speak  of  a  persecution  of  the  Christians 

in  this  early  period  any  more  than  of  a  brilliant  public 

activity  on  the  part  of  the  disciples.     The  latter  must 

have  had  the  former  as  a  consequence,  and  the  Church 

would    have   been  very  quickly  effaced.      That  the 

leaders  of  the  people  did  not  in  their  turn  recognise 

the  movement  that  was  supposed  to  be  checked  by 

the  death  of  Christ,  and  did  not  think  of  vigorously 

combating  it,  is  due  to  the  consideration  that  this 

small  band  of  believers  in  the  Messiah  did  not  differ 

outwardly  in  any  way  from  other  Jews,  and  that  it 

10 


146  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

had  made  the  ideal  of  the  law-zealous  Judaism  of  the 
time  quite  its  own. 

We  may,  however,  ask  if  the  ideal  was  realised. 
Luke,  who  clearly  endeavours  to  set  this  early  Church 
in  the  fairest  light,  has  preserved  for  us  two  incidents 
which  show  that  everything  was  not  as  it  should  have 
been. 

In  the  forefront  there  is  the  story  of  Ananias  and 
Sapphira.  Urged  on  by  the  ambition  to  emulate 
Barnabas,  who  had  earned  high  praise  for  his  heroic 
self-denial  on  behalf  of  the  Church,  they  resolved 
to  take  the  same  step.  But  they  could  not  bring 
themselves  to  hand  over  the  whole  purchase  price 
of  their  land  to  the  Church.  Without  mentioning  it, 
they  reserved  a  part  of  the  sum-total  for  themselves, 
while  desiring  to  create  the  impression  of  the  same 
generosity  which  Barnabas  showed,  and  to  be  thought 
worthy  of  the  same  honour.  The  matter  is  accord- 
ingly one  of  simple  lying,  not  the  keeping  back  of  a 
gift  that  was  owed  ;  the  lie  is  all  the  more  hateful  since 
to  cover  its  ambition  it  avails  itself  of  the  cloak  of  self- 
sacrificing  love.  In  the  strength  of  the  prophetic  spirit 
Peter  discovers  tlie  deceit,  and  the  sudden  death  which 
comes  as  a  miraculous  judgment  upon  the  pair  rids 
the  Church  of  the  offenders.  This  was  the  considera- 
tion which  decided  I^uke  to  adopt  the  story.  The 
holiness  of  the  Church  reacts  spontaneously  upon 
every  offence,  however  trifling.  A¥ithout  questioning 
this,  however,  we  can  view  the  matter  in  a  some- 
what different  light.  It  indicates  that  in  the  early 
1  Church  all  the  members  were  not  saints,  but  that 
<  much  human  sin  found  its  way  into  it.  Yet  we  shall 
/   not  fail  to  observe  that  a  moral  spirit  ruled  within 


THE   CHURCH   OF  JERUSALEM  147 

the  Church,  and  did  not  neglect  the  punishment  of 
things  which  often  went  unavenged  outside  it.  It  is 
the  Holy  Spirit's  retributive  intervention  against  sin. 

The  second  instance  in  Acts  is  the  internal  differ-j 
ences  which  arise  between  the  Hebrew  and  the\ 
Hellenist  sections  of  the  community.  To  the  former  1/ 
belonged  pure  Jews,  who,  without  lea\  ing  the  holy 
soil  of  Palestine,  maintained  their  fathers'  speech, 
Aramaic,  and  their  fathers'  customs ;  while  the  latter 
consisted  of  those  who,  whether  of  free  will,  or  under 
compulsion,  as  prisoners  of  war  or  merchants,  had 
settled  outside  in  the  heathen  world,  had  some  of 
them  been  for  generations  there,  had  adopted  the 
universal  language  Greek,  and  had  allowed  them- 
selves much  relaxation  in  the  strictness  of  Jewish 
usage.  Piety  and  love  of  home  had  again  drawn 
them  back  to  the  holy  city,  not  to  a  hasty  visit  to 
one  of  the  feasts,  but  in  certain  cases  at  least  to  a 
stay  of  some  length.  Now,  however,  they  adhered 
to  the  usages  of  foreigners,  to  Greek  language  and 
custom,  and  had  therefore  to  tolerate  being  viewed 
askance  by  the  real  Jews  as  only  half-Jews  and 
being  placed  to  some  measure  on  the  same  level 
as  proselytes.  In  ordinary  life  the  antagonism  did 
not  find  any  great  expression.  The  Hellenists  kept  |  ^^ 
by  themselves  and  had  their  own  synagogue.  I^ut  I  ^ 
the  Christian  Church  united  both  in  one,  and  so  ) 
brought  the  antagonism  to  light.  The  Hellenists 
complained  that  at  the  "  daily  ministration "  less 
attention  was  paid  to  the  poor  of  their  ranks.  It 
would  appear  that  the  complaint  was  not  without 
justification  :  for  the  community  chooses  from  among 
the   Hellenists  the  seven  who  were  entrusted  with 


148  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

charge  of  the  distribution.  Here  again  the  most 
important  point  for  the  author  of  Acts  is  the  quick 
and  effective  settlement  of  this  disturbance  of  the 
common  peace  by  the  introduction  of  the  new  in- 
stitution of  the  seven  through  the  Spirit  of  God 
working  in  tiie  Apostles.  In  this  arrangement  we 
shall  recognise  a  proof  of  the  powerful  moral  Spirit 
which  regulated  the  existing  forces,  and  employed 
them  wisely  for  the  general  good,  each  after  its  kind. 
Then,  too,  we  shall  have  to  honour  the  character  of 
this  first  "  office "  in  Christendom,  the  care  of  the 
poor.  Evidently  it  is  like  the  "  preaching  office  "  of 
the  Twelve,  quite  a  voluntary  dignity  that  did  not 
keep  its  holder  fully  occupied.  Stephen  finds  time 
for  a  rich  evangelical  ministry  as  well.  Of  most 
importance  for  us  is  the  proof  which  it  gives  that 
divisions  and  discords  were  already  known  in  the 
early  Church. 

Luke's  ideal  picture  presents  only  these  two 
shadows.  It  would  be  historically  as  unjust  to 
conclude  that  there  were  no  other  troubles  in  the 
moral  life  of  this  Church  as  it  would  be  vain  to  set 
forth  considerations  that  might  have  given  rise  to 
them.  The  condition  of  the  early  Church  under 
the  immediate  guidance  of  the  Apostles  was  no 
ideal  one,  but  it  was  a  time  of  pious  Jewish  zeal  and 
quiet  growth  in  Christian  spirit. 


JEWISH  CHRISTENDOM. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Further  Development. 

The  Hellenists  brought  a  new  element  into  the 
Church.  They  were  far  removed  from  Pharisaic 
legalism.  Much  even  that  belonged  to  their  law 
was  weakened  and  set  aside  for  them  by  allegorical 
interpretation.  If  Jesus'  preaching  of  the  Kingdom 
of  God  had  an  aspect  that  went  beyond  legalism, 
it  fell  here  upon  understanding  ears.  Apart  from 
Jesus'  foes,  these  Greeks  were  the  first  to  appreciate 
and  give  expression  to  the  fact  that  the  attitude  of 
Jesus  to  the  Sabbath,  and  His  words  regarding  the 
Temple,  represented  in  principle  a  higher  stage  than 
Old  Testament  worship  and  an  abolition  of  the  law 
itself.  On  the  early  Church  that  had  a  twofold  effect. 
Externally  it  led  to  the  first  greater  conflict  with  the 
Jews.  Stephen,  the  leader  of  the  Hellenists,  suffered 
martyrdom,  and  the  Church  was  scattered.  Internally  \ 
it  rendered  the  former  naive  attitude  to  the  law  ^ 
impossible.  At  least  all  the  most  vigorous  thinkers 
were  exercised  as  to  whether  the  law  was  an  external 
order  of  God  and  still  absolutely  binding  on  the  new 
Church,  or  whether  it  was  abolished  through  Jesus. 
Was  Christianity  the  true  Judaism,  or  something 
different,   something  new  ?     We  see  the   conflict  in 

149 


150  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

its  most  pronounced  form  with  Paul,  who  fought 
Christianity  as  rebelhon  against  the  law,  but  simul- 
taneously with  his  conversion  became  the  Apostle  of 
the  law-free  Gospel. 

Yet  there  was  a  section  of  the  early  Church,  its 
very  kernel,  composed  of  immediate  disciples  like 
Peter,  which  still  adhered  firmly  to  the  former  view. 
That  can  be  easily  explained  from  the  impression 
which,  with  all  His  liberty,  Jesus  had  made  on  them 
by  His  loyal  observance  of  the  law. 

They  felt  themselves  inwardly  free  from  the  law, 
but  the  idea  of  outward  emancipation  never  occurred 
to  them.  At  the  first  glance  Peter  thought  the 
proposal  to  go  into  a  heathen  house  strange  and 
even  offensive.  It  required  a  Divine  encouragement 
to  persuade  him  (Acts  x.).  Soon  afterwards  in 
Antioch,  when  the  same  Peter  wished  to  join  the 
company  of  Paul,  Barnabas,  and  other  Gentile  Chris- 
tians, he  again  felt  some  scruples  and  withdrew 
(Gal.  ii.   11  fF.). 

On  the  other  hand,  the  Hellenists,  including  as 
the  most  energetic  champions  Barnabas  and  Paul,  the 
Hebrew  of  the  Hebrews,  represented  with  increasing 
clearness  the  complete  separation  of  Christianity 
from  Judaism.  They  preached  in  Samaria,  they 
went  even  to  Antioch  and  brought  the  news  of 
salvation  to  the  God-fearing  heathen.  With  that, 
however,  the  former  moral  ideal  of  Jewish  Chris- 
tianity, unconditional  obedience  to  the  law  of  Israel, 
was  given  up.  A  special  ideal  of  Christian  morality 
required  to  be  formed  in  opposition  to  the  heathen 
one.  How  this  was  done,  and  how  it  quickly 
began  to  be  realised  under  the   powerful   influence 


FURTHER    DEVELOPMENT  151 

of  Paul  in  his  churches  among  heathen  and  Jews, 
we  have  ah*eady  seen. 

As  opposed  to  this,  however,  there  began  in 
Jerusalem  itself  a  reaction  of  increasing  conscious- 
ness, sustained  chiefly  by  such  as  had  not  belonged 
to  the  circle  of  Jesus'  own  disciples  and  were  not 
touched  by  His  free  Spirit.  The  chief  representative 
is  James,  the  Lord's  brother,  who  had  not  joined  the 
Church  till  after  the  death  of  Jesus,  but  who,  as  the 
Lord's  brother  and  by  his  own  strong  personality, 
quickly  attained  a  leading  position.  These  people 
deliberately  support  the  unconditional  obligation  of 
the  law :  the  Pharisaic  ideal  is  also  the  Christian  ; 
perfected  holiness  in  communities  loyal  to  the  law 
prepares  the  way  for  the  Lord's  return. 

In  Jerusalem  this  movement  appears  to  have 
gained  more  ground.  Luke  explains  it  by  the 
coming  over  of  numerous  Pharisees  (xv.  5).  It  is 
more  likely  that  the  others  left  Jerusalem :  first, 
the  Hellenists  (after  the  Stephen  persecution),  in 
order  to  carry  the  Gospel,  whose  far-reaching  signifi- 
cance they  had  come  to  recognise,  into  the  wide 
world ;  then,  probably  as  the  result  of  steps  taken 
against  them  by  Herod  Antipas  in  the  year  44, 
Peter  and  perhaps  also  other  members  of  tlie  original 
band,  who  grew  more  attached  to  their  view  as 
time  went  on. 

The  stricter  section  remained  behind ;  James  re- 
tained the  power  in  his  hands.  We  see  him  at 
the  so-called  Apostolic  Council,  in  the  year  51, 
occupying  a  leading  position  with  Peter  and  John 
(Gal.  ii.  9,  cf.  Acts  xv.  13),  and  by  the  year  58  he 
stands  alone  at  the  head  of  the    Church  (Acts  xxi.  i 


152  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

18),  the  recognised  leader  of  Palestinian  Christendom 
until  his  death,  probably  in  the  year  62.  The  senti- 
ment of  the  circle  which  rallied  round  him,  the  spirit 
which  guided  the  early  Church  in  this  later  period, 
we  learn  clearly  from  the  so-called  apostolic  decree. 
This  decree,  indeed,  as  it  is  reported  in  Acts,  chap,  xv., 
cannot  be  accepted  as  a  resolution  of  the  original 
Apostles  and  the  assembled  Church,  passed  in  the 
presence  of  Paul  and  Barnabas  in  the  year  51. 
Probably,  in  accordance  with  the  unmistakable 
notice  in  Acts  xxi.  25,  it  was  issued  in  the  course 
of  the  following  years  by  James  and  his  people  to 
the  Syrian-Cilician  mission-field  long  abandoned  by 
Paul.  Here  the  demand  is  made  of  Gentile  Chris- 
tians that  they  should  abstain  from  the  eating  of 
meat  offered  to  idols,  from  blood,  things  strangled, 
and  fornication,  out  of  regard  for  the  Jews,  with 
whom  they  lived  in  the  mixed  Christian  churches 
(<?/!  XV.  21).  On  the  one  hand  it  may  be  maintained 
that  in  this  decree  no  dogmatic  views  were  laid 
down,  but  only  precepts  which  aimed  at  practical 
conduct,  precepts  that  regulated  morality.  The  fact 
speaks  well  for  the  spirit  of  this  Jewish  Christianity. 
On  the  other  hand,  however,  it  reveals  the  true 
Jewish  contempt  of  heathen  :  while  the  morality  was 
simply  presupposed  as  existent  among  the  Jews,  it 
was  not  believed  that  the  Christian  spirit  would  lead 
the  Gentiles  to  chastity  without  an  express  command- 
ment. Again,  the  combination  shows  a  want  of  right 
moral  appreciation.  This  eminently  moral  command- 
ment is  coupled  with — nay,  comes  after — demands 
of  an  essentially  ceremonial  kind,  an  eloquent  testi- 
mony to  the  Pharisaic  spirit  of  these  Jewish  Chris- 


FURTHER   DEVELOPMENT  153 

tians.  Even  though  the  omission  of  the  demand  for 
circumcision  may  signify  a  withdrawal  of  the  sole 
adequacy  of  their  special  form  of  Christianity,  the 
fact  that  such  regard  was  demanded  from  heathen 
Christians  shows  how  sensitive  the  Jewish  Christian 
conscience  was  in  these  things,  and  how  anxiously 
Jewish  Christians  themselves  observed  them.  If 
meat  offered  to  idols  and  fornication  alone  had  been 
named !  These  two  things  constituted  for  ages  the 
special  temptations  of  paganism. 

That  a  special  point  was  made  of  blood  and  things 
strangled,    shows   the   characteristic   quality   of    this' 
Christian  rabbinism.     Here  in  the  circle  of  James — 
on  this  point  there  can  be  no  doubt — the  Jewish  ideal 
of  holiness  is  made  the  universal  Christian  ideal. 

The  reverence  of  later  ages  for  this  man,  who,  as 
the  Lord's  brother,  occupied  an  altogether  special 
position,  not  only  raised  him  far  above  Peter  and  the 
Twelve,  and  made  him  the  first  witness  of  the  resur- 
rection, but  also  drew  a  picture  of  him,  which, 
though  largely  fanciful,  enables  us  to  recognise 
clearly  the  ideal  of  these  Jewish  Christians.  Hege- 
sippus  writes  of  James,  "  whom  all  call  the  just. 
From  his  mother's  womb  he  was  holy.  Wine  and 
must  he  did  not  drink,  neither  did  he  eat  flesh.  A 
scissors  came  not  upon  his  head  ;  he  put  no  oil  upon 
him,  and  made  no  use  of  a  warin  bath.  He  alone 
might  enter  into  the  holy  of  holies  ;  he  also  wore  no 
woollen  thing,  but  garments  of  linen.  And  he  went 
alone  into  the  Temple,  and  was  found  on  his  knees 
praying  for  the  forgiveness  of  the  people,  so  that 
bis  knees  were  hardened  like  a  camel's,  because  he 
always   bent   them   praying   to   God    and   imploring 


154  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

forgiveness  for  the  people.  On  account  of  the  ex- 
ceeding measure  of  his  righteousness,  he  was  called 
the  Just  and  Oblias,  i.e.,  being  translated,  guardian 
of  the  people  and  righteousness." 

In  this  picture  there  are  different  features  mixed 
up.  In  the  first  place  there  is  the  Nazarite  conse- 
crate to  Jahweh.  He  abstains  from  all  intoxicating 
drink,  and  lets  his  hair  grow.  He  is  described  as 
"  devoted  to  Jahweh,"  and  is  connected  with  the 
Rechabites.  At  the  same  time  he  is  also  the 
high-priestly  intercessor  for  his  people.  Clad  only 
in  linen,  he  entered  the  holy  of  holies,  and  here, 
stretched  before  God  till  his  knees  were  hardened, 
prayed  for  the  forgiveness  of  his  people.  These 
two  characteristics  are  not  widely  separated.  The 
Nazarite,  who  realised  in  himself  the  ancient  ideal 
of  one  consecrate  to  God,  is  as  holy  as  the  priest. 
He  is  at  once  the  votary  and  the  intercessor. 

This  Christian  high-priest  is  certainly  only  an  ideal 
picture  —  as  impossible,  historically,  as  individual 
touches  in  the  martyrdom  attached  to  it.  But  it 
shows  us  how  perfect  righteousness  was  conceived 
among  the  Jews.  It  is  no  new  ideal,  but  takes  its 
colour  entirely  from  the  Jewish  piety  of  the  Old 
Testament. 

It  is  vain  to  ask  to  what  extent  this  ideal  found  its 
realisation  in  the  single  personality  of  the  Lord's 
brother,  The  honourable  title  of  "  the  Just "  was 
applied  to  him  not  only  by  his  brethren  of  the  faith, 
but  also  by  unbelieving  Jews.  But  there  is  no  good 
evidence  to  show  that  such  weight  was  laid  on  his 
high -priestly  character  as  to  lead  the  people  to  bring 
him  forward  to  witness  against  Jesus.     Enough,  the 


FURTHER   DEVELOPMENT  155 

picture  of  James  shows  us  the  line  of  moral  effort 
within  the  Jewish  Christian  circles  of  Palestine —  / 
rio'hteousness  within  the  law  which  was  viewed  with 
a  strictness  at  least  equal  to  if  not  greater  than  that 
of  the  Pharisees.  The  law  was  taken  seriously ; 
there  were  no  such  attempts  to  evade  it  as  were 
made  by  the  Pharisees. 

We  are  certainly  entitled  in  support  of  this  to  cite 
the  tradition  of  the  Lord's  words,  which  were  col- 
lected and  edited  with  special  care  in  these  circles. 
It  is  indeed  no  simple  matter  to  value  these  aright. 
To  what  extent  can  they  be  traced  back  to  the  Lord, 
and  how  much  has  the  Church  added  ?  Do  the 
alterations  which  we  certainly  come  across  reflect 
the  views  of  broader  circles,  or  are  they  more  or  less 
unconscious  licences  in  the  statement  of  them  ?  It 
lies  outside  the  limits  of  our  task  to  follow  out  these 
points  in  detail.  At  any  rate,  in  Jewish  Christian 
circles  the  Lord's  sayings  had  a  different  and  greater 
effect  than  in  the  Pauline  Churches  ;  not  that  they 
were  less  authoritative  for  the  Gentiles,  but  that  they 
were  less  known,  and  were  less  suited  to  the  circum- 
stances among  them.  Much  that  he  found  in  his 
source  was  omitted  by  Luke  as  unessential  and  un- 
intelligible to  his  readers.  The  Gospel  of  Matthew, 
though  in  its  present  form  exclusively  suited  to 
Gentile  Christians,  retained  much  more  of  the  Jewish 
backgroimd.  A  saying  like  Matt.  v.  17,  which  is 
mentioned  in  the  Talmud  as  springing  from  the 
Gospel,  and  cited  by  Jewish  Christians,  whether 
really  a  word  of  the  I^ord  or  not,  liad  the  effect  of 
one.  It  strengthened  Jewish  Christians  in  their 
loyalty  to  the  law,  and  later  caused  the  Gentile  Chris- 


156  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

tians  to  establish  a  new  law.  The  beatitudes,  the 
exposition  of  the  law,  the  directions  as  to  right  giving 
of  alms,  praying  and  fasting,  trusting  to  God  and 
having  no  care,  not  judging  others,  and  preserving 
discipleship  even  in  the  outward  deed,  also  influenced 
the  ideal.  Too  light  a  view  of  them  was  prevented 
by  sayings  like  that  of  the  strait  gate.  All  this 
points  in  one  direction,  the  deepening  of  and  giving 
inward  content  to  them.  Any  freer  utterances  bear- 
ing on  the  Sabbath,  the  Pharisaic  purificatory  usages, 
the  temple -tax  and  sacrifice,  would  be  similarly 
understood :  "  These  ought  ye  to  have  done  and  not 
to  leave  the  other  undone,"  "  Cleanse  first  that  which 
is  within  the  cup  and  platter,  that  the  outside  of 
them  may  be  clean  also  "  (Matt,  xxiii.  23,  26). 

A  saying  like  that,  contained  only  in  the  Codex 
Cantabrigiensis  (Luke  vi.  4),  on  the  Sabbath-breaker, 
"  Blessed  art  thou,  O  man,  if  thou  knowest  what  thou 
art  doing;  but  if  not,  then  cursed  art  thou  as  a 
transgressor  of  the  law,"  can,  if  genuine,  have  been 
only,  so  to  speak,  rescued  for  the  Gentile  Church. 
More  probably  it  is  a  result  of  later  reflection.  It 
was  already  much  that  those  independent  sayings  of 
the  Lord  were  kept  in  memory ;  every  occasion  was 
lacking  in  these  pious  Jewish  Christian  circles  to 
assert  their  authority  in  action.  On  the  other  hand 
we  possess  in  the  Stephen  narrative,  and  in  the  report 
of  the  martyrdom  of  James,  two  equally  beautiful 
instances  of  the  delight  with  which  the  request  of 
the  Lord  for  fearless  confession  was  obeyed,  and  how 
precisely  His  command  to  pray  for  enemies,  supported 
by  His  own  example,  was  observed.  In  these  things, 
with  all  their  conservative  attitude  to  the  law,  they 


FURTHER   DEVELOPMENT  157 

had  become  conscious  of  the  special  character  of 
Christian  faith  and  conduct.  This  constituted  the 
new  element  which  was  also  at  once  the  unifying 
and  the  distinguishing  factor. 

Naturally  a  community  so  wide,  so  distinctly 
separated  from  its  environment,  could  not  continue  to 
live  in  the  former  family  manner.  Tolerably  early  a 
fixed  organisation  was  here  developed.  This  was 
facilitated  by  the  natural  position  of  James  as  the 
Lord's  brother  and  by  his  energetic  character.  How 
the  presbytery  arose  alongside  of  him  we  do  not  know. 
But  it  can  hardly  be  wrong  to  say  that  here  there 
was  a  conscious  imitation  of  Jewish,  or,  better  still, 
Old  Testament  arrangements,  Num.  xi.  16  f.  {cf.  the 
pseudo-Clementine  Epistle  of  Peter  to  James,  i.). 
Paul  left  the  development  of  an  organisation  as  well 
as  the  realisation  of  the  moral  ideal  to  the  working  of 
the  Spirit.  The  Jewish  Christians  had  both  organisa- 
tion and  ideal  when  they  took  up  a  decided  position 
on  the  main  principle,  "  We  Christians  are  the  true 
Israel."  Jewish  Christianity  was  spared  the  conflicts 
as  to  constitution  which  played  such  an  important 
role  in  Gentile  Christianity.  Already  the  very  tra- 
dition of  the  Lord's  words  revealed  the  early  origin 
and  the  high  appreciation  of  the  close  organisation. 
In  jNIatthew  the  idea  of  the  Church  is  found  twice. 
It  occurs  in  the  famous  words  to  Peter  (xvi.  18),  for 
whom  the  later  Jewish  tradition  would,  so  to  speak, 
gladly  have  substituted  James,  and  in  connection 
with  a  regulation  of  Church  discipline  (xviii.  17). 
The  reference  to  discipline  reveals  to  us  the  serious 
view  taken  of  the  duty  of  forgiveness  and  the  diffi- 
culties  which   beset  its  practice.     If  the  offender  is 


158  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

not  to  be  moved  by  any  kindly  counsel,  the  only 
means  left  is  excommunication.  As  an  organised 
Church,  too,  Christendom  preserves  still  the  character 
of  brotherhood.  For  the  rest,  even  here  ministers  of 
the  Spirit  were  not  quite  lacking.  The  five  Jewish 
Christian  prophets  and  teachers  in  Antioch,  the 
prophet  Agabus,  and  the  four  prophetically-gifted 
daughters  of  the  evangelist  Philip,  are  instances  in 
point.  These  latter  also  show  that  women  took  a 
prominent  place  in  the  Jewish  Christian  communities. 
Such  an  influence,  however,  on  the  moulding  of  the 
general  views  as  they  exerted  in  the  Gentile  world, 
could  not  have  been  attained  by  the  prophets  here. 
The  importance  of  the  law  and  all  that  hung  on  it 
was  too  great. 

Christian  confession  involved  the  obligation  to 
spread  the  Gospel.  Missionary  work  in  Israel  did 
not  at  any  time  cease,  though  we  know  little  about 
it  in  this  later  period.  Wherever  there  was  a 
national  Judaism,  conventicles  of  Christian  believers 
were  formed  as  far  as  Damascus.  But  in  regard  to 
morality  these  did  not  differ  specifically  from  their 
surroundings.  The  people  who,  following  the  Lord's 
directions,  moved  about  in  the  land  from  place  to 
place,  from  house  to  house,  clad  in  only  one  cloak, 
without  shoe  or  staff,  without  purse  or  scrip,  and 
living  on  hospitality,  did  not  desire  to  realise  a  new 
moral  ideal  and  establish  it  among  their  compatriots. 
There  was  not  to  be  any  glorification  of  beggary  or  a 
new  order  of  Essenes.  Rather  they  acted  as  the  Lord 
bade  them,  because  time  pressed  and  they  were  called 
to  address  a  message  to  Israel ;  nothing  was  to  pre- 
vent or  hinder  them  in  this.     Nor   did   the  message 


FURTHER   DEVELOPMENT  159 

which  they  brought  of  the  near  Kingdom  of  God  bid 
the  Jews  now  cease  to  be  Jews.  On  the  contrary 
they  were  to  be  true  Jews,  loyal  and  conscientious  in 
the  discharge  of  all  the  religious  and  moral  duties 
that  pertained  to  all  such.  But,  as  distinguished  from 
the  Pharisaic  ideal  and  from  Pharisaic  practice,  there 
appeared  in  the  foreground  here  humility,  upright- 
ness, purity  of  heart ;  and  brotherly  kindness,  readiness 
to  help,  and  hospitality  were  extended  to  all  without 
distinction.  Thus  the  Christian  houses  here  and 
there  in  the  land  may  have  differed  somewhat  from 
what  people  were  used  to  till  then.  But,  as  a  matter 
of  fact,  it  was  only  the  ancient  ideal  set  up  already 
by  the  prophets  and  wisdom  teachers  that  was  realised 
through  faith  in  Jesus  of  Nazareth  as  the  divinely- 
chosen  JNIessiah. 


> 


JEWISH  CHRISTENDOM. 

CHAPTER  X. 

JuDAiSTic  Propaganda. 

The  Jewish  Christians  who  were  convinced  of  the 
unconditional  obhgation  of  the  law  did  not  restrict 
their  labours  to  their  native  land,  where  the  observance 
of  the  law  had  a  historical  claim  upon  the  Christians, 
in  so  far  as  it  was  conceived  to  be  national  duty. 
They  carried  on  a  propaganda  in  the  heathen  world 
also.  We  know  only  too  well  the  confusion  which 
this  Jewish  agitation  caused  in  the  Pauline  com- 
munities. In  the  light  of  Pauline  polemic,  we  are 
inclined  to  look  upon  its  leaders  as  underhand  and 
self-seeking  peace  destroyers,  and  consequently  not 
to  place  any  great  trust  on  the  Jewish  Christianity 
from  which  they  proceeded.  But  we  are  not  to 
forget  that  we  possess  only  one-sided  reports  of  the 
quarrel.  Paul  was  partisan  in  the  matter.  He  may 
have  been  materially  right  and  may  have  had  occasion 
enough  to  complain  bitterly  of  his  opponents'  pro- 
cedure, yet  the  fact  that  he  refused  to  recognise 
among  them  anything  but  the  lowest  egoistic  motives 
shows  that  something  of  the  old  Pharisaism  still  clung 
to  the  Apostle.  It  would  be  impossible  to  grasp  the 
whole  activity  of  these  Judaists  apart  fi'om  their 
being  moved  by  some  sort  of  ideals. 

160 


JUDAISTIC   PROPAGANDA  161 

The  law  was  absolutely  binding.  The  Christian 
moral  ideal  was  identical  Avith  that  of  Judaism.  The 
condition  of  being  without  law,  heathendom,  was,  as 
such,  sin  (Gal.  ii.  15).  The  Gospel  had  now  penetrated 
into  the  Jewish  Siaa-Tropa  and  the  heathen  world.  That 
might  have  sufficed  ;  but  Judaism,  and  especially  the 
Pharisees  and  those  zealous  for  the  law,  was  eagerly 
concerned  to  make  proselytes.  Now,  however,  the 
heathen  must  become  genuine  proselytes  of  Jewish 
Christianity,  zealous  disciples  of  the  Christian 
rabbis. 

Instead  of  this  Paul  and  his  companions  had  accom- 
modated themselves  to  the  heathen ;  they  not  only 
renounced  all  observance  of  the  law  in  the  case  of 
new  converts,  but  themselves  denied  the  law,  and 
caused  the  Jews  whom  they  won  to  do  so,  to  live 
together  in  closest  connection  with  the  polluted 
heathen  as  with  Christian  brethren,  and  to  share 
their  meals.  Paul  did  not  even  protest  against  meat 
offered  to  idols,  and  he  permitted  mixed  marriages. 
In  addition  to  all  that  he  propounded  a  theory  of 
faith  and  grace,  which  in  its  practical  consequences 
could  only  be  summarised,''  Let  us  do  evil  that  good  ? 
may  come."  Here  was  a  cry  to  heaven.  Steps  must 
be  taken  for  the  salvation  of  these  Christians  and  the 
native  Jews  among  them.  They  must  be  showed 
that  this  conduct  cannot  be  allowed ;  that  at  least 
the  Christian  Jew  must  still  observe  the  law  and  must 
keep  far  from  the  uncircumcised,  even  when  these  are 
Christians ;  and  that  even  the  heathen,  to  gain  the 
full  righteousness  which  alone  leads  to  salvation, 
must  adopt  the  law,  be  circumcised,  keep  the  Sabbath, 

avoid  unclean  meats,  and  so  forth,  in  a  manner  cor- 

11 


162  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

responding  with  Jewish  custom  and  the  ideal  of  these 
Jewish  Christians. 

The  first  storm  occurred  in  Antioch,  a  Church,  to 
be  sure,  strongly  pervaded  with  Jewish  elements,  in 
which,  however,  the  liberal  views  of  Paul  must  have 
governed  the  intercourse  of  all  Christians.  Here  the 
Judaists  immediately  came  on  the  scene  and  made 
the  direct  demand  that  all  Christians  shall  be  cir- 
cumcised, for  circumcision  is  necessary  to  salvation 
(Acts  XV.  1).  This  attack  having  been  beaten  off 
through  the  firm  attitude  of  Paul  and  Barnabas,  and 
an  acknowledgment  of  uncircumcised  heathendom  in 
the  person  of  Titus  wrung  from  the  authorities  in 
Jerusalem  (we  are  not  concerned  further  with  the 
nature  of  the  mission  distribution  and  the  outward 
proof  of  unity  in  the  collection  made  by  the  Gentile 
Christians  for  the  poor  of  Jerusalem,  Gal.  ii.  9  f.),  the 
convinced  representatives  of  the  legal  standpoint 
attempted  to  save  at  least  the  Jews  in  the  Antioch 
Church.  Here  they  surprised  Peter,  the  most  notable 
disciple  of  the  Lord,  sitting  at  table  with  heathen 
without  scruple  and  in  contempt  of  the  law.  In 
Corinth  we  saw  Paul  exercised  to  free  his  Christians 
from  unlimited  intercourse  with  the  heathen  ;  here 
these  Judaistic  fanatics  erected  a  similar  wall  of 
division  within  the  Christian  Church  itself 

We  learn  what  impression  was  made  by  their 
arguments  from  the  fact  that  not  only  Peter,  but  also 
all  the  other  Jews  in  the  Church,  including  Barnabas, 
Paul's  comrade  of  many  years'  standing  in  the  mission- 
field  and  his  companion  in  trials,  yielded  to  them  and 
formed  an  exclusive  body  alongside  of  the  Gentile 
Church.     This  naturally  involved  an  indirect  attack 


JUDAISTIC   PROPAGANDA  163 

on  the  Gentiles.  It  required  the  whole  of  Paul's 
clearness  of  principle  and  moral  energy  to  oppose  the 
onset,  and  if  for  the  moment  he  did  secure  the  upper 
hand  he  was  nevertheless  driven  out  of  Antioch, 
his  former  scene  of  labour.  He  sought  a  new  and 
essentially  pagan  basis  for  his  work.  Here,  too,  his 
opponents  followed  him  ;  and  as  he  everywhere  con- 
nected himself  with  the  synagogue  and  everywhere 
to  a  certain  extent  formed  mixed  Churches,  he  him- 
self gave  them  an  opportunity  of  attacking  him. 
In  Corinth,  in  Galatia,  and  in  Rome  we  meet  them, 
always  with  the  same  intention  even  if  with  varying 
tactics. 

In  Corinth  they  at  first  adhered  entirely  to  the 
synagogue  and  endeavoured  from  this  basis  to 
influence  the  Pauline  community.  They  sought  to 
attract  to  themselves  the  Jewish  element  there,  rally- 
ing round  the  party-cry  of  Cephas.  Perhaps  it  was 
they  who  quickened  the  people's  anxiety  in  the  matter 
of  meat  offered  to  idols.  They  took  advantage  of  the 
case  of  immorality  and  of  the  Church's  insubordina- 
tion towards  the  Apostle ;  their  first  concern  was 
to  shake  his  absolute  authority.  To  this  end  they 
appear  to  have  employed  means  which  justly  raised 
the  anger  of  Paul.  Nothing  can  justify  their  daring 
to  calumniate  him  as  a  deceiver  who  reimbursed  him- 
self out  of  the  collection  for  his  renunciation  of 
support  (2  Cor.  xii.  16),  and  as  an  immoral  person 
who  did  shameful  things  in  secret  (2  Cor.  iv.  2).  They 
cannot  be  excused  for  throwing  suspicion  upon  the  sin- 
cerity of  his  language  and  the  purity  of  his  intentions, 
nor  for  employing  his  bodily  weakness  against  him  and 
laughing  at  his  visions.     But  we  must  remember  that 


164  JEWISH    CHRISTENDOM 

for  them  he  was  an  apostate,  and  that  from  the  earhest 
times  men  have  always  been  inchned  to  look  for  the 
lowest  motives  among  heretics  and  to  turn  even  the 
good  into  evil.  We  cannot,  indeed,  free  Paul  from 
having  repaid  them  with  like  coin.  In  Antioch  he 
speaks  only  "  of  false  brethren  unawares  brought  in 
who  came  in  privily  to  spy  out  our  liberty  which  we 
have  in  Christ  Jesus  that  they  might  bring  us  into 
bondage  "  (Gal.  ii.  4).  Just  as  in  the  case  of  Peter  and 
Barnabas  he  sees  only  vile  hypocrisy  due  to  fear  of 
man  (Gal.  ii.  12  f ),  so  he  treats  the  Jews  in  Corinth 
with  the  most  scathing  scorn  : — "  Such  an  one  "  (2  x. 
11),  "  without  understanding  "  (12),  "  glorying  beyond 
measure  in  other  men's  labours  "  (15).  With  biting 
irony  he  names  them  "  the  very  chiefest  apostles  "  (xi.  5, 
xii.  11),  and  compares  them  to  the  serpent  which 
seduced  Eve  (xi.  3) ;  they  are  false  prophets,  lying 
workers,  who  change  themselves  into  apostles  of 
Christ,  as  Satan  transforms  himself  into  an  angel  of 
light  (xi.  13  f)  ;  they  enslave  the  Church  and  drain  it 
of  its  strength.  Thus  Paul  employs  against  them 
the  use  w^hich  they  made  of  the  apostolic  right 
recognised  by  him,  because  he  does  not  acknowledge 
their  apostolic  calling.  It  is  in  the  last  instance 
always  a  conflict  of  principles.  We  may  regret  that 
it  is  carried  on  with  such  personal  bitterness,  and 
blame  the  agitators  as  the  originators  ;  but  however 
much  we  may  defend  the  assailed  and  injured  Apostle, 
especially  in  view  of  his  admirable  conduct  towards 
his  Church,  to  which  he  is  always  showing  fresh 
tokens  of  love,  mildness,  gentleness,  and  forgiveness, 
we  must  direct  our  attention  in  the  first  instance  to 
the   principle.       It   is  the  question  of  righteousness. 


JUDAISTIC   PROPAGANDA  165 

As  ministers  of  righteousness — the  real  true  righteous- 
ness, and  not  the  heathen  semblance  of  it  that  Paul 
preached—  the  Judaists  came  among  the  Corinthians, 
and  those  Corinthians  who  thought  tliey  could  not 
take  their  stand  upon  the  right  of  Christian  freedom 
too  strongly  towards  Paul,  let  themselves  be  im- 
pressed by  this  "  righteousness."  What  they  under- 
stood by  that  the  agitators  do  not  appear  to  have  at 
once  expressed  quite  clearly  ;  of  the  dispute  about 
the  law  Paul  speaks  here  hardly  at  all. 

The  opponents  in  Galatia  come  forward  still  more 
explicitly  with  their  demands.  The  law,  with  cir- 
cumcision, regular  festivals,  and  commands  touching 
meats — these  external  and  main  considerations  of 
Judaism — is  binding  upon  all  Christians.  That  was 
not  established  here  either  without  an  attack  on  the 
authority  of  Paul,  whose  Gospel  had  to  be  repre- 
sented as  at  least  imperfect  and  in  need  of  supple- 
menting. But  here  personal  insinuation  seems  to 
have  been  avoided.  All  that  was  probably  indicated 
was  that  his  system  was  calculated  to  please  men  and 
to  catch  the  greatest  possible  number  (i.  10),  that 
he  himself  occasionally  preached  circumcision  (v.  11), 
and  that  he  sometimes  rebuked  his  Churches  (iv.  16). 
Here,  also,  Paul  employs  the  most  pungent  and 
biting  severity :  he  thunders  one  anathema  after  ^ 
another  upon  the  disturbers  of  the  peace  (i.  7  ff.), 
and  hands  them  over  to  the  judgment  of  God  (v.  10). 
He  sees  in  their  labours  among  the  Galatians  only 
the  egoistic  attempt  to  secure  a  following  (iv.  17), 
to  make  a  fair  show  in  the  flesh,  and  to  escape 
the  persecution  of  the  unbelieving  Jews  (vi.  12) ; 
he  goes  so  far  as  to  say,  "  I  would  they  were  even 


166  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

cut  oiF  which  trouble  you  "  (v.  12).  But  these  are 
only  single  utterances  in  the  middle  of  a  discussion 
which  has  regard  only  to  principle.  The  question 
here  too  is,  "  Can  there  be  perfected  righteousness 
without  the  law  ? "  From  their  own  point  of  view 
the  Judaists  acted  quite  consistently  when  they 
demanded  from  the  Gentile  Christians  of  Galatia 
the  recognition  of  the  law  as  an  indispensable  and 
divinely-ordered  means  of  salvation. 

Even  when  imprisoned  in  Rome,  Paul  had  not 
done  with  these  conflicts.  He  still  sees  at  work  in 
the  activity  of  Jewish  missionaries  personal  motives 
directed  against  him  (Phil.  i.  15  ff.):  he  describes 
such  persons  as  enemies  of  the  cross  of  Christ  who 
only  seek  their  own  (ii.  21),  men  of  earthly  intention, 
whose  God  is  their  belly  (iii.  18  f.).  But  he  had 
fought  his  way  to  the  acknowledgment  that  here,  too, 
Christ  is,  to  a  certain  degree,  preached,  and  for  that 
he  rejoiced  (i.  18). 

This  brings  us  to  the  proper  point  of  view  for 
forming  an  opinion.  The  Judaists  were  concerned 
with  a  real  propaganda  in  favour  of  Christianity, 
the  full  complete  Christianity  as  they  understood 
it ;  and  that  was  the  Christianity  of  righteousness 
in  the  exercise  of  obedience  towards  God.  It  was  a 
supplementing  of  Paul's  Gospel  on  the  ethical  side — 
in  modern  phraseology,  justification  by  faith  through 
sanctification.  It  shows  more  than  one  parallel  to 
Pietism  in  its  fight  against  orthodoxy.  The  Judaists 
were  no  more  just  to  Paul  than  the  Pietists  were  to 
genuine  Lutheranism  :  they  denied  the  moral  strength 
which  comes  with  faith  as  such,  according  to  Paul  and 
Luther.     On  this  point  Paul's  doctrine  requires  no 


JUDAISTIC   PROPAGANDA  167 

supplementing ;  only  a  stronger  emphasising  of  the 
moral  effect  of  the  Spirit  could  help  where  there  were 
real  defects.  Paul,  as  we  saw,  did  emphasise  it  more 
and  more.  The  way,  however,  in  which  the  Judaists 
wished  to  supplement  his  teaching  was  indeed  as 
unfortunate  as  possible.  By  simply  adding  the  old 
law  they  dragged  back  their  new  religion,  which  was 
developing  with  great  vigour  in  its  independence,  to 
the  standpoint  of  the  old.  Besides,  as  is  the  way  of 
all  sects,  they  worked  within  the  Pauline  Churches  less 
for  Christianity  than  for  their  own  particular  ends. 
When  we  consider  what  they  achieved,  the  unrest, 
the  strife,  the  wrangling,  and  the  bitterness  in  the 
Churches,  and  the  tension  which  they  caused  between 
them  and  the  Apostle,  we  shall  indeed  feel  inclined 
to  apply  to  them  the  doom  which  the  Saviour  pro- 
nounced against  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  makers 
of  proselytes  (INlatt.  xxiii.  15).  The  truest  judgment 
passed  on  these  believing  Jews  and  their  propaganda 
is  that  which  in  a  great  hour  Paul  pronounced 
upon  his  unbelieving  compatriots :  "  They  have  a 
zeal  for  God,  but  not  according  to  knowledge  ;  being 
ignorant  of  God's  righteousness,  they  seek  to 
establish  their  own"  (Rom.  x.  2  f.). 


JEWISH  CHRISTENDOM. 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Jewish  Christendom  of  the  Later  Period. 

The  Jewish  agitators  form  only  a  part,  probably  a 
very  small  part,  of  Jewish  Christendom,  which  ought 
not  to  be  judged  by  its  extremes  in  a  one-sided  way. 
That  of  itself  it  could  give  birth  to  a  propaganda 
of  this  extent  is  remarkable.  The  energy  which  was 
thrown  into  the  movement  deserves  notice.  But 
for  the  bulk  of  Jewish  Christians  we  shall  have  to 
look  for  the  practical  demonstration  of  their  moral 
strength  in  another  sphere. 

The  "  sixties "  deprive  them  of  their  leaders  and 
their  centres.  James,  we  may  suppose,  was  martyred 
in  62,  Paul  in  63,  and  Peter  in  64.  Before  Jerusalem 
was  besieged  the  Christians  fled  into  the  district  east 
of  Jordan  to  Pella  (Euseb.,  Hist.  Eccl.,  iii.  5).  As  to 
what  became  of  them  there  we  are  but  poorly  in- 
formed. We  hear  of  relations  of  Jesus,  who  earned 
a  scanty  living  as  peasants :  they  showed  the  Emperor 

,  Domitian  their  horny  hands  {ibid.,  iii.  20).  In  these 
•  circles,  as  we  learn,  there  was  still  some  stress  laid  on 
family  relationship  with  the  Lord.  We  have  here 
to  seek  the  source  of  the  ideal  picture  which 
Hegesippus  gives  us  of  the  Lord's  brother.  Cer- 
tainly the  Spirit  of  James  was  cultivated.     Here  also 

\  joy  in  confession  was  highly  valued  {ibid.,  iii.  32,  iv.  22). 

'  *  168 


JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM— LATER   PERIOD    169 

We  learn  that  about  the  middle  of  the  second 
century  two  tendencies  existed  side  by  side,  which 
can  be  looked  upon  as  the  continuation  of  the  dis- 
tinction represented  by  Peter  and  James.  There 
were  those  who  adhered  to  the  traditional  law  of 
their  people,  but  did  not  consider  it  as  belonging  to 
Christianity,  and  those  who  declared  the  law  binding 
upon  all  Christians.  Justin,  in  his  dialogue  with 
Trypho  (chap,  xlvii.)  recognises  the  former,  but  will 
not  admit  that  the  latter  belong  to  the  Church. 
How  far  and  in  what  spirit  each  of  these  divisions  has 
actually  fulfilled  the  law  we  cannot  tell.  The  trans- 
formation of  the  law  into  a  system  of  rules  of  conduct 
without  temple  or  holy  city  must  have  been  easier 
for  them  than  for  their  non-Christian  companions. 
A  story  about  Rabbi  Elieser  and  the  Christian 
miracle-worker  Jacob  of  Kephar  Sekhanji,  preserved 
for  us  in  the  Talmud  (Ropes,  Words  of  Jesus,  pp. 
149  f.),  leaves  the  impression,  that  these  Christians 
in  their  treatment  of  the  law  were  quite  as  trivial  and 
perverse  as  the  Jewish  rabbis.  But  if  it  is  admitted 
that  there  was  a  real  kernel  there,  what  guarantee 
do  we  have  that  in  the  Rabbinical  Tradition  the 
Christian  saying  retained  its  true  form  ? 

We  possess  a  better  source  in  the  fragments  of 
the  Gospel  of  the  Hebrews,  which  unfortunately  are 
very  scanty.  Here  we  come  upon  a  quite  different 
spirit.  Active  brotherly  love,  assistance,  and  com- 
passion are  insisted  on  exactly  as  in  1  John  iii.  17, 
iv.  20.  "  Behold  many  of  thy  brethren,  sons  of 
Abraham,  are  wrapped  up  in  filth,  and  dying  of 
hunger,  and  thy  house  is  full  of  rich  goods,  and 
nothing   comes   from  it  for   them."      To   trouble   a 


170  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

brother's  spirit  is  considered  among  the  worst  of 
sins  :  "  Never  rejoice  except  when  ye  see  your  brother 
united  with  you  in  love."  These  are,  in  fact,  true 
developments  of  the  fundamental  thought  of  Jesus, 
and  if  the  Jewish  Church  gave  birth  to  them,  we  may 
be  assured  that  it  was  also  concerned  to  realise 
them.  The  strange  variants  in  the  account  of 
Christ's  baptism  show  that  stress  was  laid  on  the 
consciousness  of  sin  and  guilt — just  as  in  1  John 
i.  8  fF.  The  disciples  of  Jesus  were  to  be  the  good. 
Begging  is  forbidden.  Manual  labour  is  esteemed. 
The  position  of  women  is  raised,  if  the  citation 
from  the  Talmud  is  right,  according  to  which  the 
Gospel  as  distinguished  from  the  law  decrees  that 
daughters  shall  inherit  equally  with  sons.  It  is  in- 
deed a  serious  misapprehension  of  the  main  thought, 
when  in  the  parable  of  the  pounds  the  man  who 
buries  his  pound  is  merely  reproached  for  it,  while 
the  weight  of  punishment  falls  upon  the  man  who 
squandered  his  with  prostitutes  and  flute  -  players. 
The  introduction  of  this  feature  from  the  parable 
of  the  prodigal  son  certainly  weakens  the  effect,  and 
it  throws  a  sad  light  upon  these  Christian  Churches, 
that  an  express  warning  such  as  we  find  quite 
natiu'al  in  the  heathen  world  was  here  conceived 
to  be  necessary.  That  everything  was  not  pure  and 
clean  here  is  self-evident.  We  should  believe  it 
even  without  the  Talmud's  story  of  an  unjust, 
corruptible  Christian  judge.  But  that  this  hostile 
source  has  not  more  to  say  about  the  wickedness  of 
the  Christians  must  certainly  be  regarded  as  credit- 
able. Even  more  than  the  first  decades  had  done, 
the  excitement  of  the   Bar  Cochba  time  had  given 


JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM— LATER   PERIOD    171 

them  opportunity  to  prove  in  martyrdom  their  belief 
in  the  JMessiah  Jesus  of  Nazareth  and  his  unpohtical 
Kingdom  of  God,  and  thereby  to  give  that  proof  of 
the  strength  of  Christian  morahty,  which  even  the 
Gentile  Christians  of  the  second  and  third  centuries 
considered  most  decisive. 

Later  on  some  of  the  Jewish  Christians  approximated 
more  and  more  to  the  Gentiles.  In  ^Elia  Capito- 
lina,  on  the  ancient  and  holy  ground  of  Jerusalem,  a 
Gentile-Christian  Church  arose.  Aristo  of  Pella  wrote 
in  the  Greek  tongue  a  dialogue  against  an  Alexandrian 
Jew.  Hegesippus  is  in  principle  a  Catholic  Christian. 
Those  w^ho  did  not  share  in  this  development,  who 
still  adhered  to  circumcision,  legal  usages,  and  the 
Jewish  mode  of  life,  were  considered  heretics,  as 
early  as  the  time  of  Irena^us  (Hier.,  1  xxvi.  2). 
The  view  may  be  considered  severe,  but  it  is  historic- 
ally justified. 

In  these  Jewish  Christian  circles  of  Palestine  also, 
Gnosticism  and  its  accompaniment  of  asceticism 
entered.  With  it  came  a  complete  alteration  of 
the  old  legal  ideal  of  a  righteousness  like  that  of 
the  Pharisees,  but  superior  to  it.  That,  however, 
belongs  to  another  chapter. 

Let  us  conclude  with  a  short  summary  of  our 
view  of  Jewish  Christianity  in  the  first  century. 
In  the  matter  of  morality  it  had  a  different  task 
from  that  of  the  Churches  of  Paul  in  heathen  lands.i 
For  Jewish  Christians  it  was  not  a  matter  of  de-l 
veloping  an  entirely  new  ideal  in  opposition  to  the' 
traditional  and  popular  one,  but  of  deepening  and 
strengthening  the  existing  one.  This  they  did  to 
the  best  of  their  power,  and  thereby  rendered  a  real 


172  JEWISH   CHRISTENDOM 

service  to  Christianity  as  a  whole.  We  were  struck 
with  the  immaturity  of  the  young  Gentile  Churches  ; 
they  were  in  the  growing  stage.  The  Jewish 
Christianity  on  Jewish  soil  bears  to  some  extent 
the  features  of  something  old  and  complete. 

The  Jewish  Christianity  of  Palestine  trained  by  the 
law  was,  so  to  speak,  the  backbone  which  supported 
the  moral  consciousness  of  the  whole.  We  must 
never  forget  that  Paul  himself  was  sprung  from 
Judaism.  And  the  Judaistic  agitation  in  his 
Churches,  in  spite  of  all  the  injury  it  did,  still 
achieved  the  result  of  laying  more  stress  on  the 
( moral  side  of  Christianity.  The  apostolic  decree 
affected  perhaps  only  a  narrow  circle  directly  ;  but  in- 
directly, through  its  reception  in  Acts,  it  influenced  the 
whole  of  Gentile  Christianity.  Later,  too,  men  of  out- 
standing importance  sprang  from  Jewish  Christendom 
— perhaps  more  than  we  suspect.  Jewish  Christianity 
bequeathed  to  the  Gentile  Church  the  very  precious 
treasure  which  it  possessed  in  the  collection  of  the 
sayings  of  the  Lord.  At  the  same  time  it  gave 
the  Bible  of  the  Old  Testament  to  the  Gentiles. 
Because  of  this.  Gentile  Christianity  approached  ever 
nearer  to  the  ideals  of  Jewish  Christianity — whether 
under  the  direct  influence  of  Jewish  Christianity  or  not 
is  quite  indifferent.  When  that  was  attained  Jewish 
Christianity  had  fulfilled  its  task.  It  had  only  tem- 
porary significance  and  was  bound  to  perish.  That  it 
remained  alive  till  the  days  of  a  Jerome  is  astonishing. 
And  we  should  certainly  be  still  more  astonished  at 
the  services  it  rendered  in  this  period  in  the  field 
of  moral  education,  if  history  were  not  so  thankless 
in  dealing  with  quiet,  earnest  work  in  small  things. 


Book  III. 


LATER  CHRISTIANITY  AMONG  THE  HEATHEN. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

The  Churches  stiel  under  Pauline 
Ineluence^Asia  Minor. 

When  we  turn  again  to  the  Gentile  Churches  on 
Graeco-Roman  soil,  we  find  a  far  greater  variety.  At 
first  the  influence  of  the  Apostle  Paul  still  dominates  ; 
it  is  possible  to  speak  directly  of  a  post-Pauline  phase 
of  Christianity.  Then,  however,  other  persons  and 
powers  come  into  view.  In  the  front  of  these  was 
John  of  Asia  Minor,  a  man  of  quite  different  mould 
from  Paul,  of  different  origin,  with  a  different  de- 
velopment, and  a  different  position,  but  nevertheless 
the  most  powerful  influence  in  his  circle.  There 
remained,  however,  reminiscences  of  Paul,  and  so  a 
mixed  picture  comes  to  be  developed.  Both  influences, 
however,  are  crossed  by  a  third,  a  current  which  came 
from  outside,  but  quickly  secured  a  place  for  itself 
in  Christianity — Gnosticism.  Gnosticism  is  only  one  C^ 
among  many  currents  ;  but  it  cannot  be  treated  as  a 
mere  foil  to  the  development  of  ordinary  Christianity. 
Its    significance   claims    a   special    treatment.       And 

173 


/ 


174     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

lastly,  in  the  conflict  with  this  strange  tendency 
the  development  comes  to  a  relative  conclusion  in 
what  we  might  call  Catholicising  Christianity,  which, 
though  primitive  Christian  in  its  ground  principle, 
and  still  imperfect  in  its  outward  form,  nevertheless 
already  anticipates  material  features  of  the  later 
Catholicism.  This  chapter  divides  accordingly  into 
four  sections.  Only  within  the  first  is  a  geographical 
division  possible. 

In  the  period  immediately  following  the  time  of 
Paul  we  find  the  picture  only  slightly  altered.  We 
have  still  small  communities  scattered  here  and  there 
in  the  larger  towns.  They  were  connected  with  one 
another  only  by  the  spiritual  bond  of  faith  and  mutual 
love,  and  as  single  communities  were  only  weakly 
fastened  together  by  an  organisation  just  in  process 
of  formation.  The  want  of  a  ruling  personality  like 
the  great  Gentile  Apostle  is  distinctly  noticeable. 
They  had  all  looked  to  him  as  to  their  spiritual 
father,  and  had  recognised  his  authority  absolutely, 
though  sometimes  unwillingly.  Now,  indeed,  there 
were  not  wanting  true  leaders  and  advisers  for  the 
Churches.  But  these  felt  themselves  to  be  descend- 
ants. They  covered  themselves,  if  they  appeared  as 
authors,  with  the  name  of  Paul,  Peter,  Barnabas,  or 
James,  and  when  they  desired  to  be  impressive,  they 
repeated  with  trifling  modifications  some  such  thing 
as  the  table  of  domestic  duties  from  the  Epistle  to 
the  Colossians. 

The  communities  themselves  had  gained  in  com- 
pass and  also  in  tasks.  Continually  widening  circles 
had  to  be  educated  in  Christianity,  while  at  the  same 
time  the  danger  of  a  large  stream  of  impiu'c  elements 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE    INFLUENCE   175 

winning  admission  or  supremacy  in  the  Church  had 
to  be  guarded  against.  On  the  other  hand  we  must 
not  neglect  a  fact  usually  undervalued,  viz.,  that  in 
the  interval  a  class  of  old  experienced  Christians  had 
been  formed.  For  years,  in  some  cases  from  earliest 
youth,  these  had  been  under  the  discipline  of  the 
Christian  spirit,  and  represented,  so  to  speak,  the 
conscience  of  the  Church,  reacting  against  all 
degeneracy  quite  otherwise  than  the  Apostle,  with 
all  his  authority,  had  been  able  to  do  from  without. 
Such  excesses  as  those  in  Corinth  during  Paul's  time 
are  no  longer  heard  of  The  moral  demands  are 
perhaps  somewhat  lessened,  but  the  average  morality, 
the  moral  consciousness  of  the  whole,  is  raised.  There 
no  longer  breathes  that  mighty  spirit  which  accom-' 
plished  extraordinary  things  in  the  first  enthusiasm ; 
they  have  become  smaller  and  more  petty,  but  at  the 
same  time  more  painstaking  and  more  faithful  in  small 
things. 

The  difficulties  which  the  scantiness  of  our  sources 
causes  in  this  section  are  increased  by  the  fact  that 
these  are  so  difficult  to  understand :  we  do  not 
usually  know  even  the  author ;  we  are  in  doubt  as 
to  the  time  and  place  of  origin.  Nevertheless  a 
local  classification  alone,  however  subjective  it  may 
be,  will  make  it  possible  for  us  to  avoid  a  false 
generalisation  and  to  estimate  correctly  what  is 
special  to  each  case. 

We  begin  with  the  Christendom  of  Asia  Minor. 
Thence  comes  the  precious  meditation  upon  the 
mystery  of  divine  economy  in  the  uniting  of  a 
humanity  formerly  divided,  which  we  know  as  the 
Epistle  of  Paul  to   the   Ephesians.     The   epistle  is 


( 


176    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

most  intelligible  when  we  understand  it  as  the 
effusion  of  a  profound  Christian  thinker  whom  Paul's 
Epistle  to  the  Colossians  had  excited  to  such 
thoughts.  Asia  Minor  is  also  indicated  in  the  letter 
under  the  name  of  Peter,  which,  originating  in  Rome 
after  his  martyrdom,  is  directed  to  the  Christians  of 
the  mission-field  worked  by  Paul  in  Asia  Minor 
and  adheres  strictly  to  his  way  of  thinking.  These 
two  epistles  are  very  different  in  nature.  The  one  is 
profound  speculation  set  forth  in  the  hymning  tone 
of  exultant  devotion ;  the  other  sober  exhortation  to 
practical  demonstration  of  Christianity  with  a  clear 
outlook  on  the  circumstances  of  the  time.  But  the 
conditions  which  they  presuppose  agree  entirely  in 
their  main  features.  Both  epistles  contain  in  these 
common  features  many  echoes  of  the  Johannean 
world  of  thought  still  to  be  discussed.  But  they  are 
not  to  be  interpreted  as  if  already  they  were  influenced 
by  John ;  they  show  us  rather  the  basis  upon  which 
John's  peculiar  comprehension  of  Christianity  could 
become  fruitful. 

In  the  first  place  it  is  remarkable  how  strongly  the 
moral  aspect  of  Christianity  comes  into  evidence. 
Christianity  is  the  practical  ordering  of  life  according 
to  the  principles  of  a  new  moral  spirit.  There  is 
here,  indeed,  a  greater  divergence  of  the  two  lines, 
knowledge  of  the  mystery  of  divine  salvation  and 
exercise  of  obedience  towards  God's  will,  which  Paul 
binds  fast  together  in  the  word  faith ;  but  the 
practical  bent  of  piety  maintains  the  supremacy 
throughout.  The  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians,  penetrat- 
ing in  prayerful  devotion  into  the  mystery  of  the 
union   of  the   two   halves    of    humanity   in    Christ, 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   177 

emphasises  knowledge  above  all  (i.  9,  17  ff.,  iii.  3  fF.) ; 
next  to  that,  however,  stands  love  as  the  ground  prin- 
ciple of  Christian  hfe  (i.  4,  iii.  17,  v.  2),  which,  while 
surpassing  all  knowledge,  is  yet  in  the  last  instance 
the  object  of  it  (iii.  19).  It  is  speculation,  but  no 
unfruitful  speculation,  when,  in  Eph.  ii.  10,  the  good 
works  which  are  the  special  feature  of  the  Christian 
condition  are  prepared  by  God  beforehand,  that  the 
Christians  should  walk  in  them,  and  it  is  conceived 
as  the  end  of  their  being  chosen  before  the  foundation 
of  the  world  that  they  should  be  holy  and  without 
blemish  before  Him  in  love  (14). 

All  through  the  first  Epistle  of  Peter,  which  with 
great  clearness  turns  its  attention  to  the  practical 
questions  of  life,  in  view  particularly  of  the  persecution 
that  threatened  on  all  sides,  the  leading  thought  is 
obedience  to  the  will  of  God  (i.  2,  14,  22) — instead  of 
want  of  faith  we  find  disobedience  (ii.  8,  iii.  1,  20, 
iv.  17) — ,  in  joy  (i.  6,  8),  and  hope  (i.  3,  21).  Christian 
conduct  was  comprehensively  expressed  in  the 
characteristic  word  ayaOoiroua,  doing  good. 

The  moral  spirit  shows  its  effect  on  the  conception 

of  Christianity  in  very  varied  directions.     There  was 

a  real  devotional  life  not  only  in  the  author  of  the 

Epistle  to  the  Ephesians  with  its  prayerful  tone,  but 

also  in  the  Churches  (Eph.   vi.   18  f.).     There  is  no 

disposition  to  check  the   free  motion  of  the  Spirit : 

"  Be  filled  with  the  Spirit"  (Eph.  v.  18).     But  we  do 

not   hear   any   more   of  those  eccentric  occurrences 

of  a  too   tense  enthusiasm   which  happened  at  first. 

"Be  ye  therefore  of  sound  mind,  and  be  sober  unto 

prayer,"  "  Be  sober,  be  watchful,"  run  the  warnings 

in    1    Pet.    iv.    7,    v.    8.      Even   the   married  life  is 

12 


178     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

to  be  regulated  by  the  practice  of  prayer  (1  Pet. 
iii.  7). 

The  statements  in  the  first  Epistle  of  Peter  (iii.  19  f., 
iv.  6)  on  the  preaching  of  Christ  to  the  dead  have 
been  much  disputed.  To  estimate  these  properly 
they  must  be  set  alongside  of  the  superstitious  view 
of  the  influence  of  vicarious  baptism  on  those  already 
dead,  which  we  came  across  among  Corinthian 
Christians  in  the  time  of  Paul.  Both  have  the  same 
end  in  view :  the  discovery  of  some  comfort  for  the 
fate  of  those  who  were  warmly  loved,  but  must,  it  is 
feared,  be  for  ever  lost,  because  the  blessing  of  the 
saving  Gospel  had  not  been  attained  by  them  in  life. 
In  Corinth  the  attempt  was  to  secure  it  through  a 
holy  magic ;  here,  by  the  idea  of  a  missionary 
preaching  'which  reached  even  to  the  dead.  The 
advance  in  moral  conception  is  unmistakable. 

The  Christian  conduct  of  life  is  still  defined  by  its 
opposition  to  surrounding  paganism.  "  Given  over  to 
lasciviousness  to  work  all  uncleanness  with  greedi- 
ness" (Eph.  iv.  19),  "  having  our  conversation  in  the 
lusts  of  our  flesh"  (Eph.  ii.  3,  cf.  1  Pet.  i.  14,  ii.  11), 
lasciviousness,  lusts,  excess  of  wine,  revellings, 
banquetings,  and  abominable  idolatries  (1  Pet.  iv.  3), 
malice,  guile,  hypocrisies,  envies,  and  evil  speakings 
(1  Pet.  ii.  1) — such  being  the  nature  of  heathendom, 
Christianity  stands  in  complete  opposition  to  it. 

Heathendom  is  ayvola,  i.e.,  it  lacks  all  sure  moral 
knowledge,  because  it  is  alienated  from  God.  Chris- 
tianity brings  this  knowledge  (Eph.  iv.  17  f ,  1  Pet. 
i.  14).  There  was  darkness,  here  was  light  (Eph.  v. 
8,  1  Pet.  ii.  9).  Heathendom  is  moral  death ; 
Christianity  is  life  (Eph.  ii.   1  fF.)  or  effective  power 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   179 

(Eph.  i.  19,  iii.  20).  And  this  is  so  not  in  spite  of, 
but  because  of  the  Christians'  acute  consciousness 
that  not  this  hfe  but  the  next  is  all-important  for 
them :  in  Heaven  they  are  at  home ;  on  this  earth 
they  feel  themselves  strangers  (Eph.  i.  3  f.,  ii.  6, 
1  Pet.  i.   1,  17,  ii.   11). 

However  much  the  opposition  to  heathendom  was 
emphasised,  it  was  very  difficult  in  practice  to  separate 
the  Christian  Churches  from  contact  with  the  sur- 
rounding heathen  world.  That  is  shown  by  the 
exhortations  which  are  introduced  and  always  re- 
peated, abo^  e  all  by  1  Pet.  iv.  3  f.  Old  and  good 
friends  are  offended  at  the  sudden  cessation  of  earlier 
relations  and  retaliate  with  the  same  weapon.  JNIen 
who  naturally  do  not  judge  their  life  as  the  Christian 
convert  now  does,  and  are  conscious  of  being  honour- 
able citizens,  cannot  but  think  that  behind  this 
Christian  brotherhood  which  withdraws  so  anxiously 
into  itself  some  abominations  or  other  lie  hid,  which 
have  to  fear  the  light :  and  so  they  calumniate  the 
Christians. 

At  this  time,  as  the  notice  in  Tacitus  {Ann.,  xv.  44) 
shows,  there  must  have  been  current  all  those 
suspicions  of  the  Christians,  against  which  the 
apologists  of  the  second  century  had  unceasingly  to 
defend  their  companions  of  the  faith.  It  was  said 
that  they  did  the  most  horrible  things  in  their  secret 
assemblies,  including  imnatural  unchastity  and  cere- 
monial sacrifice  of  children.  Begotten  of  the  filth  of 
a  corrupted  people's  fancy,  and  nourished  through 
religious  fanaticism,  these  charges  repeatedly  appear 
in  the  history  of  religion.  The  figurative  speech  of 
the    Christians    seems    to    have    given    them    some 


180     CHRISTIANITY  AMONG  THE   HEATHEN 

ground.  That  the  rabble  of  Rome  set  them  going 
is  not  to  be  wondered  at ;  that  a  historian  like  Tacitus 
spread  them  without  investigation  is  a  lamentable 
indication  of  the  lack  of  understanding  of  the  fact  of 
Christianity  on  the  part  of  a  noble-thinking  and 
eminent  Roman.  The  sharp  censor  of  the  corrupted 
old  world  did  not  recognise  that  here  there  were  to 
hand  in  kernel  the  moral  forces  which  would  shape 
the  world  anew. 

Especially  valuable  witness  is  borne  to  the  ground- 
lessness of  that  report  by  his  contemporary  the 
younger  Phny  in  his  report  to  Trajan  during  the 
period  of  his  governorship  of  the  Province  of  Bithynia. 
The  Christians,  even  those  who  forswore  Christianity 
before  the  pro-consul,  solemnly  declared  that  among 
them  nothing  in  the  nature  of  crime  happened.  On 
the  contrary,  at  their  Sunday  assemblies  they  laid 
vows  upon  one  another  to  commit  no  theft,  robbery, 
or  adultery,  and  not  to  embezzle  property  entrusted 
to  them.  \A^hen  the  pro-consul,  after  putting  two 
deaconesses  to  the  torture,  could  not  come  to  any 
other  conclusion  than  that  he  had  to  do  with  a 
perverted  and  gross  superstition,  the  question  was 
forced  upon  him,  which  he  put  to  the  Emperor, 
whether  Christianity  as  such  was  punishable,  or  only 
in  case  of  crime  being  proved  also.  It  is  the  same 
question  which  the  Christians  had  plainly  stated  and 
clearly  answered :  "  But  let  none  of  you  suffer  as  a 
murderer,  or  as  a  thief,  or  as  an  evil-doer,  or  as  a 
busybody  in  other  men's  matters ;  yet  if  any  man 
suffer  as  a  Christian,  let  him  not  be  ashamed,  but 
let  him  glorify  God  on  this  behalf"  (1  Pet.  iv.  15  f.). 
It  cannot  be   untrue   that   possibly  in    single   cases 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE    INFLUENCE    181 

Christians  were  actually  guilty  of  such  crimes,  and 
were  therefore  condemned.  The  dWoTpieTria-Koireh 
especially,  meddling  in  things  that  did  not  concern 
them,  intervening  in  politics  from  the  standpoint  of 
Christian  eschatology,  or  pressing  forward  with  their 
own  confession  during  the  trial  of  another  Christian, 
might  be,  for  many,  a  great  temptation.  From  the 
words  of  1  Peter  we  cannot  prove  that  murderers, 
thieves,  and  other  evil-doers  were  actually  to  be 
found  in  the  Christian  Churches,  nor  even  that  the 
author  reckons  much  on  the  possibility  of  Christians 
being  condemned  for  such  crimes.  They  are  charges 
of  the  enemy,  and  everything  that  even  appears 
justification  of  them  is  to  be  avoided.  In  this  sense 
the  warnings  are  intended  as  prophylactic. 

There  was,  however,  another  aspect  of  the  opposition 
to  heathendom.  Christians  have  a  missionary  task  to 
perform,  and  the  moral  life  is  a  means  to  it  {cf. 
Matt.  V.  16).  It  is  not  enough,  instead  of  participat- 
ing in  the  fruitless  works  of  darkness,  only  to  reprove 
them  (eXey-^ere,  Epli.  V.  II,  c/!  John  xvi.  8),  and  through 
doing  good  to  put  to  silence  the  ignorance  of  foolish 
men  (I  Pet.  ii.  15,  iii.  15  £);  they  must  win  un-\ 
believers  by  the  silent  preaching  of  a  blameless 
Christian  walk  in  the  fear  of  God  and  in  chastity 
(1  Pet.  ii.  12).  In  especial  this  is  the  task  of  the 
Christian  partner  in  mixed  marriages  (1  Pet.  iii.  1  f.). 
Here  again  we  see  that  the  separation  from  the  out- 
side world  was  still  by  no  means  complete,  however 
much  it  was  aimed  at. 

We  are  reminded  of  Paul  and  conditions  in  the 
Pauline  Churches  by  the  positive  way  in  which  the 
different  questions  of  the    Christian    moral   life   are 


182     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

handled.  The  first  Epistle  of  Peter,  written  in  Rome, 
discusses  the  attitude  to  the  magistracy  quite  in  the 
method  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  :  unconditional 
submission  is  commanded  for  the  Lord's  sake  (ii. 
13  f.).  Here,  however,  it  becomes  clear  that  the 
Christians  had  had  occasion  by  this  time  to  become 
acquainted  with  the  organs  of  the  Roman  administra- 
tion in  their  different  grades  as  adversaries  of  Chris- 
tianity. However  much  they  are  made  to  stand  for 
justice  "  for  the  punishment  of  evil-doers  and  the 
praise  of  them  that  do  well,"  the  feeling  throughout 
is  that  for  the  most  part  they  are  persecutors.  It  is 
all  the  more  remarkable  that  the  principle  of  respect- 
ful recognition  of  their  divine  appointment  is  main- 
tained without  alteration.  An  Old  Testament  word 
lends  its  aid.  The  Christian  exhortation,  "  show 
honour  to  all  and  love  the  brotherhood,"  goes  hand 
in  hand  with  Prov.  xxiv.  21  :  "  Fear  God,  honour 
the  king."  This  is  not  the  language  used  where  a 
revolutionary  spirit  prevails.  Similarly  the  relations 
of  the  family  life  are  treated  in  close  connection  with 
the  table  of  domestic  duties  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Colossians,  but  with  much  more  breadth,  first,  in  the 
Epistle  to  the  Ephesians,  and  then  in  the  first 
Epistle  of  Peter.  We  miss  here  the  brevity  and 
clearness,  the  insistence  on  the  things  of  great 
practical  significance,  which  distinguishes  Paul. 
Instead,  the  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians  gives  a  series 
of  lengthy  appeals,  while  the  first  Epistle  of  Peter 
multiplies  references  to  the  heathen  world.  The 
special  warning  against  drunkenness  is  new  (Eph.  v. 
18).  The  repetition  of  the  warning  to  women  to  be 
respectful  to  their  husbands  (Eph.  v.  33,  cf.  21)  can 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE   INFLUENCE    183 

hardly  be  taken  to  mean  that  any  particular  efforts 
after  emancipation  had  made  this  necessary.  There 
is  a  remarkable  warning  in  the  first  Epistle  of  Peter 
against  toilet  luxuries.  Even  outwardly  the  Christian 
woman  is  to  be  distinguished  by  chaste  simplicity, 
and  is  to  seek  her  ornamentation  in  a  meek  and  quiet 
spirit  (iii.  3  f ).  Here  we  have  a  proof  not  so  much 
that  the  desire  for  ornaments  had  won  the  upper 
hand  among  Christian  women  as  that  more  regard 
now  began  to  be  paid  to  those  outward  things.  The 
Christian  moral  ideal  assumes  more  definite  and,  to 
some  extent,  narrower  forms. 

As  a  matter  of  fact  we  have  to  observe  here  a 
double  and  very  important  advance  on  Paul.  He 
had  entrusted  everything  to  the  working  of  the  Spirit 
of  Christ,  guarding  only  against  the  influences  of  the 
heathen  spirit.  He  hardly  ever  appealed  to  the  law. 
The  pattern  which  guided  him  was  the  image  of 
Christ,  the  Lord  of  Glory,  AVho  had  humbled 
Himself 

Xow  we  find,  first,  a  Biblicising  of  the  Christian 
ideal,  if  we  may  say  so.  The  Old  Testament  is 
adduced  in  stronger  terms  as  the  foundation  of  the 
demands  of  Christian  morality.  Eph.  v.  31  refers  love 
of  husband  and  wife  to  Gen.  ii.  24,  vi.  2  f ,  and  love 
of  children  to  the  Decalogue  (Ex.  xx.  12).  The  first 
Epistle  of  Peter  (iii.  5  f )  holds  up  to  Christian  women 
the  pattern  of  the  holy  women  of  the  old  Covenant,  in 
particular  Sarah,  and  summarises  its  exhortations  in 
the  words  of  the  34th  Psalm  (vv.  13-17  =  1st  Pet.  iii. 
10-12).  The  conduct  of  the  Christians  is  to  conform 
(1  Pet.  i.  13,  22)  to  the  Passover  (Ex.  xii.  11)  and  the 
Covenant   (Ex.  xix.  10).     From  the  prophet   Isaiah 


184    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

the  picture  of  the  spiritual  armour  is  taken  (Eph. 
vi.  14  fF.).  The  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians  propounds 
a  theory,  that  the  Gentile  Christians  have  become 
fellow-citizens  with  the  saints  and  of  the  household  of 
God  (ii.  19).  Then,  too,  it  is  acknowledged  that  the 
iroXiTela  rod  'IcrparfK,  i.e.,  the  Old  Testament  morality, 
however  little  the  actual  Judaism  corresponded  with 
it  (ii.  3  f.),  supplies  the  ideal.  What  was  a  matter  of 
history  in  the  Church  at  Jerusalem  is  here  attained 
by  the  roundabout  method  of  a  historical-philosophi- 
cal speculation  apart  from  all  Judaism — the  law  is 
abolished  (ii.  14  f.) — -simply  on  the  ground  of  the 
authority  of  scripture,  as  the  Gentile  Christendom  of 
all  time  acknowledged  it.  Christian  morality  appears 
as  the  completion  of  the  Old  Testament  Jewish 
morality,  "  built  upon  the  foundation  of  the  Apostles 
and  Prophets  "  (ii.  20)  ;  in  the  same  way  the  Epistle 
to  the  Ephesians  knits  together  the  exhortations  of 
the  Apostle  Paul  to  the  Colossians  with  the  utter- 
ances of  the  Prophets. 

Yet  the  specifically  Christian  character  of  this 
morality  is  preserved,  "Jesus  Christ  Himself  being 
the  chief  corner-stone  "  (ii.  20).  This  is  the  second 
new  factor  in  the  conception  of  the  inoral  ideal ;  it 
had  received  through  the  operation  of  the  evangelical 
tradition  of  the  words  and  deeds  of  the  Lord,  a  much 
more  definite  stamp ;  they  learned  Christ,  heard 
Him,  and  were  taught  by  Him  (Eph.  iv.  20  f.).  Not 
the  self-humiliation  of  the  transcendent  Son  of  God, 
but  single  features  of  Christ's  human  life  and  passion, 
serve  as  pattern  even  in  Eph.  v.  2,  25  {cf.  24,  29), 
and  still  more  in  1  Pet.  ii.  21  ff.  (where,  it  is  true,  the 
passion  of  Christ  is  described  with  words  taken  from 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE    INFLUENCE    185 

Isaiah  liii.),  and  in  iv.   1  ;  we  may  also  adduce  here 
Heb.  ii.  17  f.,  iv.  15,  v.  7  ff. 

Besides,  the  words  of  the  Lord,  to  which  Paul 
attached  unique  authority  though  they  left  no  clear 
traces  of  extensive  influence,  begin  now  to  be  col- 
lected and  spread  abroad  in  many  forms,  and  to 
determine  the  thoughts  and  judgments  of  Christen- 
dom. They  become  a  kind  of  new  law  for  the 
Christian  Churches  and  also  for  the  Gentiles,  as  they 
had  already  been  for  Jewish  Christianity  in  another 
sense.  This  brought  to  Gentile  Christendom  an 
abundance  of  new  moral  knowledge.  At  the  same 
time  the  danger  grew,  that  what  was  spoken  against 
a  perverted  legalism  should  itself  become  law  when 
separated  from  its  context.  No  Jewish  propaganda 
was  required  for  that.  It  is  human  nature  to  view 
the  principles  of  morality  not  as  inward  impulse,  but 
as  external  law. 

The  fact  that  several  writings  agree  on  this  point 
shows  that  the  matter  is  not  the  peculiarity  of  a  single 
author.       Then,    too,   the   circumstances    correspond, 
with  the  altered   situation.      The  Churches  of  Paul\ 
were  in  reality  pure  mission  Churches  ;  only  a  small  I 
percentage  of  the  members  had  brought  with  them 
from  the    sjmagogue  any  previous   moral  education. 
Now    we    are    dealing    with    Churches    which    had 
already  a  history  behind  them.     Probably  every  day 
saw   new   members   added.     We  are  amazed  at  thei 
extension   which   Pliny  reports   Christianity  to  havei 
won  in  Asia  Minor  by  the  time  of  Trajan.     Many  of 
all  ages,  of  every  standing,  of  both  sexes,  in  the  town 
as  well  as  in  the  villages,  confess  the  name  of  Christ. 
The   temples    stand    almost   forsaken ;    their   solemn 


186    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

services  have  ceased ;  no  one  will  now  buy  the  meat 
offered  to  idols.  These  crowds  had  to  be  introduced 
to  the  Spirit  of  Christianity.  It  is  to  them  these 
warninos  not  to  walk  lono;er  like  the  heathen  are 
directed  (Eph.  iv.  17).  Christianity  cannot  endure 
lying,  theft,  fornication,  covetousness,  and  so  forth 
(Eph.  iv.  25  f.).  That  the  permeation  of  the  Chris- 
tian Spirit  was  only  partly  successful  is  shown  by 
the  great  apostasy  in  the  first  serious  interference  of 
the  Roman  governor.  Pliny  feels  certain  of  being 
able  to  bring  the  contagion  of  this  superstition  to  a 
cessation,  and  even  to  do  away  with  it  altogether. 
Most  of  the  people  quietly  offered  to  idols  and  cursed 
Christ,  while  many  declared  that,  if  they  had  ever 
been  Christians,  they  had  given  it  up  three,  and 
sometimes  twenty,  years  ago. 

How  far  these  people  had  been  laid  hold  of  by  the 
moral  spirit  of  Christianity,  and  retained  as  the  most 
important  relic  of  their  Christian  days,  the  feeling  of 
obligation  to  avoid  theft,  robbery,  adultery,  to  keep 
true,  and  not  embezzle  property  entrusted  to  them, 
we  cannot  tell.  We  are  concerned  with  the  com- 
munities. And  here  the  new  addition  is  not  so  im- 
portant as  the  old  race  of  people  grown  up  in  Chris- 
tianity, who,  so  to  speak,  represent  the  Church's 
conscience.  Through  constant  use  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, these  became  filled  more  and  more  with  the 
moral  spirit  of  the  prophetic,  and  partly  the  legal 
religion  of  Israel.  They  give  an  increasingly  con- 
stant form  to  the  tradition  of  the  I^ord,  and  more 
definite  shape  to  the  moral  ideal.  In  this  way  the 
general  moral  tone  undoubtedly  came  to  be  raised. 
We  found  the  later  letters  of  Paul  laying  stress  on 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   187 

the  fact  that  an  inward  growth  must  go  hand  in  hand 
with  the  longer  existence  of  Christianity ;  and  here 
(Eph.  iv.  13  f)  the  picture  of  growth  from  childhood 
to  manly  ripeness  and  perfected  character  is  vividly 
worked  out.  1  Pet.  v.  10  prays  for  the  preparation, 
the  perfecting,  the  stablishing,  and  the  strengthening 
of  the  Churches. 

Comparison  also  enables  us  to  observe  an  advance 
in  the  shape  of  an  increase  of  moral  requirements. 
Fornication,  unchastity,  covetousness,  shall  not  only 
not  exist  (Col.  iii.  5),  but  shall  not  once  be  mentioned 
(Eph.  V.  3).  Everywhere  the  negative  is  joined  by 
the  positive.  Putting  away  lying  (Col.  iii.  8),  let 
every  man  speak  truth  with  his  neighbour  (Eph. 
iv.  25) ;  the  thief,  instead  of  stealing,  is  to  give  his 
hands  something  to  do,  that  he  may  have  to  give  to 
the  needy  (Eph.  iv.  28)  ;  instead  of  corrupt  talk,  they 
are  to  speak  that  which  is  good  to  the  use  of  edifying 
(Eph.  iv.  29) ;  instead  of  filthiness,  foolish  talking 
and  jesting,  let  them  give  thanks  (Eph.  v.  4).  In  the 
discipline  of  children,  not  only  is  severity  repudiated, 
but  there  is  an  express  demand  for  a  Christian  moral 
training.  The  social  relations  are  already  so  equal- 
ised that  the  author  can  say  to  the  Christian  masters 
of  Christian  slaves,  "  And  ye  masters,  do  the  same 
things  unto  them  {i.e.  strictly,  obey  them  in  fear  and 
trembling!),  forbearing  threatening"  (Eph.  vi.  9). 

The  various  reasons,  "  For  we  are  members  one  of 
another"  (Eph.  iv.  25),  "as  becometh  saints"  (v.  3), 
and  the  mention  of  the  relation  of  Christ  to  the 
Church,  show  that  a  definite  Church  ideal  is  forming. 
Christ  offered  Himself  for  the  Church  to  cleanse  it  by 
the  washing  of  water,  and  to  sanctify  it  by  the  word, 


188    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

that  He  might  present  the  Church  to  Himself,  not 
having  spot  or  wrinkle  or  any  such  thing,  but  that  it 
should  be  holy  and  without  blemish  (Eph.  v.  25  fF.). 
Holiness  is  conceived  as  a  moral  demand  (1  Pet.  i. 
15).  There  is  already  a  double  designation  of  the 
community  ;  from  the  outside  they  are  "  Christians  " 
(1  Pet.  iv.  16),  from  the  inside,  a  "Brotherhood" 
(1  Pet.  ii.  17,  V.  9).  The  feeling  of  community  is 
much  fostered.  Every  one  has  his  particular  task  in 
the  service  of  the  whole  (Eph.  iv.  11  fF.,  1  Pet.  iv. 
10  f.).  The  Christian  virtues  of  lowliness,  meekness, 
long-suffering,  all  aim  at  mutual  and  loving  forbear- 
ance, at  zealous  upholding  of  the  unity  of  the  Spirit 
in  the  bond  of  peace  (Eph.  iv.  26).  "  Finally,  be  ye  all 
of  one  mind,  having  compassion  one  of  another,  love 
as  brethren,  be  pitiful  and  courteous,"  is  the  summing 
up  of  1  Pet.  iii.  8,  and  there  is  added  as  climax  of  the 
Lord's  demands,  not  to  render  evil  for  evil,  but  to 
repay  cursing  with  blessing. 

We  cannot  fail  to  observe  a  certain  relaxation  of 
moral  energy.  The  exhortation,  "  Use  hospitality  one 
to  another  without  murmuring "  (1  Pet.  iv.  9),  hints 
that  the  ever-increasing  demands  for  brotherly  assist- 
ance began  to  be  felt  burdensoine  by  many.  Some 
perhaps  sought  their  own  profit ;  hence  the  demand 
for  "  unfeigned  love  of  the  brethren"  (1  Pet.  i.  22). 
The  author  exhorts  not  to  love  merely  but  to  fervent 
love  from  the  heart  (1  Pet.  i.  22,  iv.  8),  just  as 
nowadays  it  is  often  thought  necessary  to  speak  of 
warm,  living,  strong  Christianity — always  a  sign  of 
relaxation. 

Then,  too,  there  seems  to  be  some  danger  of  per- 
verted liberty.     Like  Gal.  v.  13,  1  Pet.  ii.  16  contains 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   189 

a  warning  against  the  misuse  of  freedom  as  a  covering 
for  Mdckedness.     Christianity  is  the  service  of  God. 

Xevertheless  the  general  estimate  is  entirely  favour- 
able. Paul's  boast  of  the  faith  and  love  of  the 
Colossians  (Col.  i.  4)  can  be  simply  transferred  to 
these  Churches  (Eph.  i.  15) ;  and  1  Pet.  v.  12  affirms 
solemnly  that  they  stand  in  the  true  grace  of  God.' 
On  this  account  we  must  not  draw  false  conclusions 
from  the  exhortations  of  the  epistles  :  their  insistence 
on  the  practical  demonstration  of  religion  has  been 
necessary  in  every  age  of  Christianity. 

The  first  Epistle  of  Peter  had  special  occasion  to 
emphasise  hopeful  boldness  and  patient  endurance  of 
suffering  in  view  of  the  persecution  everywhere  re- 
vealing itself.  It  was  a  stern  probation  of  the 
Christian  condition  (i.  6  f.,  iv.  12  ff.,  v.  8  £).  The 
Epistle  to  the  Ephesians,  again,  had  every  reason  to 
exhort  to  unity  in  love,  for,  as  we  shall  presently  see, 
this  unity  was  threatened  by  a  danger  that  arose  in 
the  midst  of  the  Churches. 

While  Clu'istendoin  kept  separating  itself  more  and 
more  from  the  world,  and  defining  its  own  ideal  with 
increasing  clearness  in  dependence  on  the  Bible  of 
the  Old  Testament  and  the  tradition  of  the  Lord, 
there  appeared  two  new  internal  dangers,  which  sorely 
threatened,  if  not  the  existence  of  Christianity,  at 
least  the  purity  and  tranquillity  of  its  moral  life. 
These  dangers  were  hierarchy  and  heresy. 

We  saw  that  in  the  first  period  the  danger  of 
disorder  hindered  free  development  under  the  Spirit. 
Therefore  it  was  that  Paul  insisted  on  the  recognition 
of  the  authority  of  those  members  who  had  volun- 
tarily taken  over  the  service  of  guiding  and  managing 


190    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG  THE   HEATHEN 

church  affairs.  These  were  probably  most  of  them 
persons  whose  outward  social  position  made  it  possible 
for  them  to  make  gifts  to  the  Church.  As  people 
who  had  belonged  to  it  since  its  foundation,  or  had 
been  converted  in  other  places,  they  enjoyed  a  natural 
authority.  That  was  bound  to  change  with  time. 
♦Those  "  firstlings  "  died  away  like  the  apostles  who 
\  had  created  and  founded  tlieir  office.  Their  place 
was  taken  by  others  who  did  not  possess  the  same 
f  special  significance.  An  exclusive  circle  of  church 
elders  (Presbyters)  arose  gradually  in  the  Church. 
Tliese  might  easily  be  in  many,  or  even  most,  cases 
long-standing  members  of  the  Church,  men  whose 
age  gave  them  a  natural  claim  to  authority  ;  but 
without  such  justification  it  was  possible  for  specially 
energetic  persons  to  attain  to  leading  place.  Spiritual 
ambitions  were  developed.  What  formerly  was 
praised  as  voluntary  service  was  now  coveted  as 
something  valuable,  something  rich  in  honour  and 
material  advantages.  What  reaction  it  was  that 
called  forth  this  procedure  on  the  part  of  the 
Churches,  accustomed  as  they  were  to  the  free 
development  of  all  spiritual  gifts  and  powers,  we  shall 
afterwards  see.  Here  we  are  concerned  only  with 
the  moral  defects  which  the  new  office,  if  we  may 
speak  so  of  something  so  entirely  incomplete,  brought 
with  it  for  its  occupants. 

What  these  defects  were  we  learn  from  the 
exhortations  which  a  Roman  Christian  conceived  it 
necessary  to  give  to  them  in  the  name  of  the  Apostle 
Peter,  their  fellow-presbyter  already  glorified  through 
martyrdom  (1  Pet.  v.  1  fF.).  There  is  first  the  ex- 
hortation to  voluntariness :  "  Feed  the  flock  of  God 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE    191 

....  not  by  constraint,  but  willingly."  These  words 
recall  those  of  the  Lord  about  hirelings,  who,  instead 
of  laying  down  their  life  for  the  flock,  flee  in  haste 
when  danger  comes.  The  office  might,  in  fact,  be  felt 
by  some  not  only  as  a  burden  but  also  as  a  danger ; 
it  exposed  its  occupant  more  than  others  to  the 
magistrates  in  times  of  persecution.  If  we  several 
times  observe  in  the  Christianity  of  this  period  a 
certain  reluctance  to  suffer  and  a  tendency  to 
apostasy,  nothing  is  more  likely  than  that  the 
tendency  was  quite  as  frequent  in  the  case  of  persons 
of  leading  position.  We  know  parallel  instances 
belonging  to  a  much  later  time,  when  a  fixed  organ- 
isation prevented  apostasy  but  directly  encouraged 
flight.  Think  of  Cyprian  of  Carthage  and  Peter  of 
Alexandria,  who  both  wiped  out  the  stain  afterwards 
in  the  bath  of  blood.  Now,  too,  we  begin  to  hear  of 
difficulties  in  internal  management,  opposition  pro- 
ceeding from  the  ministers  of  the  Spirit,  disorders  in 
the  presbytery  itself,  irregularities  in  the  receipt  of 
contributions,  differences  in  doctrinal  opinions,  and  so 
forth.  It  is  easy  to  conceive  that  less  strong,  less 
ambitious,  and  less  dominating  personalities  felt  the 
office  to  be  a  burden,  and  tried  to  rid  themselves  of 
it.  "  Not  by  constraint,  but  willingly  "  ;  the  warning 
shows  the  one  side  of  the  matter. 

The  other  warning  is  still  more  significant.  "  Not 
for  filthy  lucre,  but  of  a  ready  mind  ;  neither  as  being 
lords  over  God's  heritage,  but  being  examples  to  the 
flock."  A  task  of  that  kind  releases  the  noble  forces, 
but  also  passions  and  desires.  One  would  suppose 
that  the  love  of  money  must  have  been  quite  foreign 
to  the  first  Christians  with  their  separation  from  the 


192    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG  THE   HEATHEN 

world  and  entire  concentration  on  the  future  glory. 
But  they  were  men.  The  charm  of  power-bestowing 
gold  is  ineradicable.  The  desire  to  rule  is  a  passion 
which  can  quite  overcome  many  a  gifted  and  vigorous 
mind.  So  it  is  not  unintelligible  that  temptations  of 
the  kind  appeared  within  the  presbyteries.  We  shall 
see  afterwards  how  even  the  prophets  lost  their 
authority  by  such  human  frailties  breaking  through 
in  a  very  serious  way ;  can  we  wonder  that,  where 
instead  of  the  free  Spirit  there  was  only  the  thought 
of  office,  some  succumbed  to  those  temptations  ? 

That,  however,  was  not  the  rule.  Men  of  the 
stamp  of  Callixtus,  the  best  example  of  this  type  of 
hierarch,  at  the  beginning  of  the  third  century,  were 
not  very  numerous :  on  the  contrary,  his  opponent, 
the  strict  Hippolytus,  would  have  found  at  that  time 
many  of  his  way  of  thinking.  The  apostolical  ex- 
hortation of  the  first  Epistle  of  Peter  to  the  effisct 
that  the  office  of  elder  involved  in  the  first  place  the 
task  of  a  pattern  Christian  walk,  shows  that  they 
were  still  conscious  of  the  high  responsibility  of  this 
position  in  the  moral  aspect,  and  also  of  the  signifi- 
cance which  was  attached  to  morality  even  in 
questions  like  organisation.  When  obedience  to  the 
elders  is  demanded  of  the  "  young  men,"  what  is  in- 
tended by  making  it  refer  to  the  whole  Church  may 
be  the  enforcement  of  official  authority  in  the  sense 
of  1  Cor.  xvi.  IG,  1  Thess.  v.  12.  But  apparently 
under  young  men,  as  under  "  elders,"  Christians  with 
special  services  in  the  Church  are  to  be  understood, 
a  lower  stage  of  the  clergy,  so  to  speak,  acting  on  the 
commission  of  the  elders ;  hence  the  warning  to 
obey    them.       Here,    too,    a   comparison   with    later 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   193 

occurrences  shows  how  easily  insubordination  could 
occur.  The  18th  Canon  of  Niceea,  e.g.,  deals  with 
the  communicating  of  elders  and  deacons.  But  while 
ceremonial  and  hierarchical  considerations  are  re- 
sponsible for  the  arrangements  there,  in  the  first 
Epistle  of  Peter  the  moral  idea  alone  is  of  importance. 
The  warning  closes,  "  All  of  you  gird  yourselves  with 
humility,  to  serve  one  another."  Hierarchical  ideas 
cannot  be  more  pointedly  repudiated  than  by  this 
saying,  based,  it  is  true,  upon  an  Old  Testament 
saying  (Prov.  iii.  84),  but  immediately  recalling 
Christ's  pattern  act  in  the  washing  of  the  disciples' 
feet  (John  xiii.  4,  12  fF.). 

More  critical  than  the  moral  danger  which 
threatened  the  Christian  Churches  through  hierarchi- 
cal endeavours  was  that  which  proceeded  from 
'  neresy.  This  is  spoken  of  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Ephesians,  but  in  such  general  terms  that  it  is 
hardly  recognisable  what  the  matter  really  is,  and 
one  is  tempted  to  adopt  the  view  that  the  conditions 
treated  of  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Colossians  are  simply 
re-echoed  here.  But  not  only  is  this  short  treatment 
in  the  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians  entirely  new ;  when 
we  follow  up  the  indicated  line  of  development,  we 
come  across  both  hierarchical  and  heretical  antitheses 
in  the  Johannean  literature.  It  is  perhaps  not  too 
bold  to  set  the  indications  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Ephesians  in  a  more  remote  relation  to  these.  If 
this  view  be  correct,  it  is  gnostic  speculations  of 
docetic  tendency  against  whose  seductions  our  author 
will  arm  his  readers.  This,  however,  is  not  our 
concern  further.     AA^e  are  concerned  only  with  the 

important   consideration,    that,    exactly   as    we    shall 

13 


194    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

find  in  the  Johannean  writings,  so  also  the  Epistle 
to  the  Ephesians  sees  in  the  seducing  arts  of  the 
false  teachers  (iv.  14),  in  which  it  detects  the  devil 
himself  at  work  (vi.  11),  moral  dangers  which  are  to 
be  met  by  moral  conduct.  Instead  of  being  tossed 
to  and  fro  and  carried  away  with  every  wind  of 
doctrine,  by  the  slight  of  men,  the  demand  is  simply 
to  be  true  in  love  (iv.  15).  Therefore  the  spiritual 
equipment  of  the  Christian,  which  the  author  de- 
scribes with  the  free  employment  of  a  picture  out  of 
Isaiah  (xi.  5,  lix.  17,  lii.  7),  is  truth,  righteousness, 
readiness  to  serve  the  Gospel,  faith,  certainty  of 
salvation,  the  Holy  Spirit,  supplication,  and  interces- 
sion (iv.  14  f ).  The  false  teacher  lacks  all  these. 
His  is  a  worldly  form  of  Christianity,  which,  in  its 
pride  and  superiority,  despises  the  simplest  commands 
of  Christianity,  and  that  of  love  most  of  all.  Where 
there  is  genuine  brotherly  love,  the  danger  which 
threatens  from  the  seductions  of  heresy  is  removed. 
The  practical  Christianity  of  love  meets  the  dissolu- 
tion of  religion  in  speculation  and  proves  itself 
victorious. 


LATER  CHRISTIANITY  AMONG  THE  HEATHEN. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Chuiiches  still  under  Pauline  Influence 
— Rome  and  Corinth. 

the    church    of    ROME. 

We  are  somewhat  more  fortunate  as  regards  the 
sources  for  Christianity  in  Rome.  Apart  from  the 
Gospel  of  IVIark  which  originated  in  Rome,  we 
possess  in  the  so-called  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  a 
work  of  consolation  and  exhortation,  which  is  indeed 
of  the  highest  degree  of  individual  colouring,  but 
gives  us  clear  glimpses  into  many  circumstances  of 
the  Christian  life.  The  first  Epistle  of  Peter  already 
employed  for  Asia  Minor  is  here  again  to  be  intro- 
duced on  account  of  its  Roman  origin.  Besides 
these,  we  have  the  letter  of  the  Roman  Church  to 
the  Church  of  Corinth  of  the  year  95.  Here  we  see 
more  clearly  than  in  the  Epistle  written  to  Rome 
the  spirit  which  inspired  the  Christian  Church  of  the 
world's  capital. 

Of  a  Christian  Church  in  Rome  we  may  and  must 
now  speak ;  because  in  the  year  95,  the  Christianity 
of  Rome  describes  itself  as  the  Church  of  God,  which 
enjoys  the  right  of  sojourn  in  Rome.  It  might 
easily    be    supposed    that    the    incorporation    of   the 

195 


196    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

single  circles  which  existed  at  the  time  of  Paul 
was  connected  with  the  new  organisation  after  the 
Neronic  persecution.  Nevertheless,  the  continuation 
of  single  congregations  within  the  Church  is,  con- 
sidering the  extension  of  the  town  and  the  presum- 
ably large  compass  of  the  Christian  Church,  only 
natural,  and  can  be  proved  for  a  later  period.  This 
is  why  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  gives  the  impres- 
sion of  having  been  written  not  to  the  whole  Christian 
body  of  Rome,  but  to  a  definite  circle,  a  house- church. 
For  the  rest,  there  lies  between  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews  and  the  so-called  first  Epistle  of  Clement 
a  development  which  presupposes  perhaps  a  lapse  of 
two  decades.  We  shall  treat  each  separately,  and 
begin  with  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews. 

The  very  fact  that  a  \6yo<?  TrapaKXweco'?  of  the  kind 
(xiii.  22),  a  letter  of  consolation  and  exhortation,  was 
necessary,  gives  food  for  thought.  In  that  circle 
things  were  very  far  from  being  as  the  author  wished, 
as,  indeed,  in  consideration  of  the  fact  that  the 
members  were  already  Christians  of  \  ery  long 
standing,  he  was  justified  in  expecting  them  to  be 
(v.  12).  The  explanation  lies  in  the  hardships  to 
which  these  Christians  were  always  being  exposed 
afresh.  It  is  true  they  have  already  heroically  en- 
dured one  persecution — clearly  the  Neronic :  they 
have  some  of  them  themselves  endured  reproaches 
and  afflictions,  and  become  a  gazing-stock  (perhaps 
an  allusion  to  the  employment  of  Christians  in  the 
Neronic  games),  while  others  have  endured  in  inward 
participation  with  their  fellows.  They  have  visited 
prisoners  and  have  themselves  joyfully  endured  the 
confiscation   of  their   goods   in   view   of  the   future 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE   INFLUENCE    197 

glory  (x.  32  fF.).  But  now  because  afflictions  are 
being  continually  renewed,  their  endurance  begins 
to  give  way  (xii.  3).  Apostasy  threatens  (iii.  12). 
Many  are  already  forsaking  the  assembling  of  them- 
selves (x.  25). 

^Vhat  is  the  nature  of  this  apostasy  ?  According 
to  analogous  complaints  in  other  epistles,  it  is  not  a 
falling  away  to  heathenism  or  Judaism,  but  only  a 
withdrawing  into  themselves.  Holding  fast  certain 
principles  of  Christianity,  monotheism,  the  moral 
ground  thoughts  and  faith  in  future  reward,  they 
would  live  for  themselves  without  exposing  them- 
selves through  union  with  this  persecuted  body  or 
througli  a  public  profession  of  Christ.  Hence  the 
continued  exhortations  of  our  epistle,  not  only  not 
to  forsake  the  assembling  of  themselves  together 
(x.  24),  but  to  hold  fast  to  the  confession  of  faith 
(iv.  14),  and  hope  (x.  23),  and  the  warning  against 
letting  themselves  by  such  a  withdrawal  from  the 
living  God  (iii.  12)  fall  back  to  heathenism  with  its 
service  of  dead  gods  (ix.  14). 

But  even  where  no  direct  apostasy  threatened,  a 
certain  lukewarmness  was  to  be  observed.  There' 
was  a  lack  of  proper  boldness  {-n-appricria,  x.  19).  If 
it  did  exist  (x.  35),  it  was  at  any  rate  not  much  in 
evidence,  was  not  firm  unto  the  end  (iii.  6,  14).  The 
author  has  to  be  continually  exhorting  his  hearers  not 
to  despise  his  word  (xii.  25),  but  to  hearken  to  the 
call  to  repentance  (ii.  1  fF.,  iii.  7  ff.)-  Infidelity  in  his 
view  is  unbelief  (iii.  18,  iv.  11),  transgression,  and 
disobedience  (ii.  2).  Here,  too,  oppressions  are  the 
cause  of  torpor.  They  could  not  see  how  it  was  that 
just  those   chosen  by  God  should   suffer   so    much. 


198    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

They  had  been  deceived,  they  beheved  themselves 
injured  (iv.  1).  Hence  the  author  repeatedly  refers 
to  the  sufferings  of  Old  Testament  saints  (xi.  35  fF.), 
and,  above  all,  of  the  Lord  Himself,  whose  dishonour 
they  must  bear  (xii.  2  f ,  xiii.  13) ;  hence  he  shows 
that  suffering  signifies  divine  discipline.  It  is  a  proof 
of  fatherly  love  on  the  part  of  God  (xii.  5  ff. ). 

This  point  even  his  loyal  readers  did  not  under- 
stand. In  genuinely  ancient  fashion  they  saw  in  this 
sum  of  evils  which  overtook  them,  a  proof  that  God 
was  in  some  way  or  other  angry  with  them.  The 
deep  feeling  of  guilt  and  need  for  reconciliation 
which  was  characteristic  of  the  time  arose  among 
them  in  undreamed-of  strength.  Far  from  feeling 
satisfied  with  this  Christianity  of  theirs,  they  sought 
everywhere  for  a  means  of  atonement,  and  found  it 
chiefly  in  the  ceremonial  sacrifice  ordained  by  God 
in  the  Old  Testament.  The  difficult  problem  which 
Paul  left  to  Gentile  Christians,  in  at  once  preaching 
the  abolition  of  law  and  placing  in  their  hand  the  Old 
Testament  in  which  it  stood  as  the  holy  word  of  God, 
had  to  be  faced.  It  cannot  be  our  task  here  to  show 
how  our  author  attempts  to  explain  the  difficulty  by 
his  beautiful  conception  of  the  shadowiness  and  in- 
effectiveness of  the  Old  Testament  types  and  their 
realisation  in  the  Melchizedec  high -priesthood  of 
Christ  and  His  one  sacrifice  of  obedience,  nor  how 
by  help  of  the  peculiar  character  of  Alexandrine 
exegesis  he  achieves  his  end.  Its  interest  for  us  is 
only  in  showing  what  a  burning  question  the  problem 
had  then  become.  We  have  no  occasion  to  assume 
the  operation  of  Jewish  Christian  and  Jewish  influence 
in  this  Roman  body  of  Christians.     If  we  follow  up 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   199 

the  indications  in  the  letter,  we  find  the  renewal  of 
the  expiatory  and  ceremonial  sacrifice  to  be  due  to 
thoughts  raised  purely  by  the  Old  Testament.  The 
external  occasion  was  gi\'en  by  the  necessity  of  the 
time,  the  unceasing  persecutions,  in  which  it  was 
believed  God's  anger  was  to  be  observed,  and  perhaps 
also  by  the  consideration  that  the  Jews  had  to  face 
fewer  such  troubles.  The  internal  ground,  however, 
is  rightly  detected  by  the  author  in  a  want  of 
Christian  knowledge,  which  causes  him  all  the  more 
pain,  as  from  brethren  of  such  long  standing  in  the 
Christian  faith  better  was  to  be  expected  (v.  11  ff.). 
Without  persevering  further  into  the  essence  of 
Christianity,  they  were  standing  still  at  the  very 
beginning  (vi.  1). 

His  description  of  this  stage  is  worth  noting : 
turning  away  from  the  dead  works  of  heathendom, 
monotheism,  teaching  of  washings,  laying  on  of 
hands,  resurrection  and  eternal  judgment.  The 
moral  elements  are  here  strongly  to  the  front.  The 
Christian  ideal  of  life  is  still  defined  through  its  contrast 
to  heathen  life,  the  determining  motive  is  the  prospect 
of  future  recompense.  We  can  understand,  however, 
that  from  this  standpoint  they  could  not  reach  the 
cheerful  and  confident  Christianity  which  Paul  had 
fostered  in  his  Churches  even  in  the  midst  of  great 
tribulation.  This  "  belief  in  God "  has  no  more 
efficacy  than  the  mere  intellectual  belief;  it  brings 
Christianity  to  no  elevating  and  liberating  conscious- 
ness of  salvation.  Belief  in  a  recompense  is  not  a 
cheerful  longing  for  the  heavenly  fatherland  (the 
author  wishes  to  make  it  so,  xi.  13  fF.),  but  it  is  a 
thought  that  excites  fear,  and  thereby  weakens.     The 


200    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

Christian  characteristic  of  other- worldhness,  so  strongly 
emphasised  by  the  author,  seems  to  have  become 
unfamihar  to  his  readers.  Thoughts  hke  those  which 
Paul  set  forth  in  Rom.  viii.  18  fF.  had  become  strange 
to  them  ;  hence  the  aversion  to  suffering  and  the 
dread  of  confession. 

The  picture  of  these  Roman  Christians  reveals,  on 
the  one  hand,  a  sincere  conception  of  morality.  The 
whole  search  for  other  supplementary  forms  of 
religion  proceeds  from  a  deep  moral  idea,  the  idea 
of  guilt  and  atonement.  On  the  other  hand  it  lacks 
the  very  feature  which  gives  Christian  morality  its 
peculiar  value,  the  fact  that,  based  upon  an  immov- 
able faith  in  God  and  God's  love,  it  draws  therefrom 
the  power  to  overcome  all  difficulties. 

The  author  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  re- 
cognises these  two  aspects  of  the  conduct  of  his 
readers.  On  the  one  hand  he  sharply  reproaches 
their  backwardness  in  Christian  knowledge  (vi.  1, 
xii.  1),  while  on  the  other  he  praises  their  moral 
achievements  highly  and  sees  therein  a  guarantee 
that  God  will  not  let  them  fall.  He  cannot  forget 
their  works,  i.e.,  the  whole  practical  demonstration 
of  their  Christian  standing,  and  the  love  which  they 
have  shown  His  name,  in  that  they  served  the 
saints  {i.e.,  Christian  brethren  for  Christ's  name's  sake), 
as  indeed  they  still  do  (vi.  10).  In  one  respect  he 
bears  them  very  favourable  testimony :  the  Christian 
spirit  of  communion  and  its  willingness  to  make 
sacrifices  are  strongly  developed  among  them.  He 
could  only  wish  that  every  single  one  of  them  might 
show  this  zeal  unto  the  end.  To  himself  this  would 
be   exceedingly  helpful,  because  his  hope  would  be 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE   INFLUENCE    201 

strengthened  to  joyful  assurance.  They  are  therefore 
to  urge  one  another  on  to  love  and  good  works — 
another  motive  for  regular  attendance  at  divine 
worship  (x.  25).  Much  is  acknowledged  in  the  short 
sentence,  "Let  brotherly  love  continue"  (xiii.  1); 
and  in  the  others,  "  Forget  not  to  show  love  unto 
strangers"  (xiii.  2);  "To  do  good  and  to  com- 
municate, forget  not"  (xiii.  16).  The  exhortation 
to  "  remember  them  that  are  in  bonds  as  bound  with 
them,  them  that  are  evil- entreated  as  being  yourselves 
also  in  the  body,"  is  required  only  as  a  reminder. 
Care  for  the  sick  and  imprisoned — this  is  in  the 
foreground  because  the  most  important  in  view  of 
the  greater  danger  attached  to  it — was  still  universally 
regarded  as  Christian  duty  (xiii.  3).  Communion 
with  the  brethren  far  away  is  maintained  by  corre- 
spondence, e.g.,  the  news  of  Timothy's  release  from 
imprisonment  (xiii.  23),  and  by  prayer  (xiii.   18  f ). 

The  organisation  of  the  Church  is  still  quite  free  ; 
there  are  leaders  {y^y oviJ.evoL).  Their  duty  is,  in  the 
main,  teaching  and  pastoral  work.  While  the  author 
strengthens  their  authority  among  his  readers,  we  do 
not  require  to  find  in  his  warning,  "  Obey  them  that 
have  the  rule  over  you,  and  submit  to  them  "  (xiii.  17), 
a  proof  of  any  disorder.  The  leaders  are  examples, 
especially  the  earlier  ones,  who,  perfected  through 
martyrdom,  had  maintained  their  constancy  even  to 
the  end. 

Heresy  gives  as  little  ground  for  fear  as  hierarchy. 
The  exhortation,  "  Be  not  carried  away  by  divers 
and  strange  teachings"  (xiii.  9),  appears  to  be  given 
only  in  connection  with  tendencies  of  an  ascetic 
nature,  such  as  we  found  already  combated  in  the 


202    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

Epistle  of  Paul  to  the  Romans.  In  union  with  the 
Biblicism  of  these  Roman  Christians,  the  question 
whether  this  or  that  might  be  eaten  took  on  an  Old 
Testament  colouring.  It  was  thought  that  the  heart 
was  specially  fixed  when  the  greatest  possible  ab- 
stinence was  practised.  The  author  is  of  the  same 
opinion  as  Paul,  though  the  motive  is  entirely 
different.     Everything  depends  on  the  grace  of  God. 

It  cannot  be  maintained  that  there  was  any  con- 
nection between  these  ascetic  tendencies,  on  the  one 
hand,  and  the  inclination  to  greater  emphasising  of 
belief  in  angels,  the  temptation  to  an  unchristian 
angelolatry  combated  by  the  author  on  the  other. 
Be  that  as  it  may,  we  see  in  this  wavering  of 
Christian  faith  a  new  proof  that  it  lacked  clearness, 
and,  above  all,  sure  knowledge  of  the  central  truths. 
Such  a  lack  always  exerts  an  evil  influence  on  moral 
conduct. 

Worship  is  still  maintained  in  essence  at  the  former 
high  level,  although  the  great  danger  which  its  guid- 
ance by  Old  Testament  ideas  involves  becomes  clear. 
When  the  Christian  life  is  viewed,  not  as  a  bond- 
service to  God  (1  Thess.  i.  9),  but  as  a  liturgical 
service  consecrated  to  God  (Heb.  ix.  14),  the  religious- 
moral  ground  thought  may  remain,  but  the  centre  of 
gravity  is  removed.  When  prayer  and  confession, 
charity  and  communicating  (Heb.  xiii.  15,  16),  are 
described  as  the  offering  well-pleasing  to  God,  then 
the  spiritual  moral  basis  of  this  divine  service  is  still 
noteworthy,  but  the  way  is  prepared  for  the  concep- 
tion of  this  natural  outflow  of  Christianity  as  some- 
thing special,  well-pleasing  to  God,  and  therefore 
meritorious. 


CHURCHES   TTNDER    PAULINE    INFLUENCE   203 

Compared  with  the  coiniiiunities  of  the  Paiihne 
period,  this  Roman  Church  has  undoubtedly  made 
a  considerable  advance.  Those  ground-questions  of 
practical  morality,  the  avoiding  of  unchastity,  purity 
of  marriage,  honesty  in  business,  contentedness, 
freedom  from  all  greed  of  money,  are  indeed  touched 
upon  by  the  author  (xiii.  4  f.).  But  we  get  the  im- 
pression that  he  was  following  a  catechetical  custom, 
and  only  meant  to  remind  his  readers  of  what  was 
self-evident  rather  than  to  inculcate  demands  that 
were  necessary.  What  he  conceived  to  be  the  main 
task  was  not  the  training  of  the  Church  in  Christian 
morals,  but  the  strengthening  of  its  faith  and  its 
courage  for  confession. 

All  this  throws  a  new  light  upon  the  first  Epistle 
of  Peter,  which  shares  the  background,  the  general 
views,  and  many  single  motives  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews.  It  was  the  common  sufferings  of  the  whole 
Christianity  which  caused  the  author  to  emphasise 
the  Christian  hope  so  vigorously.  His  doing  so 
shows  that  even  in  Rome  there  were  not  wanting 
men  who  held  fast  the  confession  of  faith  to  the 
end,  even  in  oppression  and  persecution.  The  Roman 
Christians  especially  have  felt  more  than  others  the 
call  to  be  strong  in  faith,  and  also  to  strengthen  the 
brethren.  The  first  Epistle  of  Clement  bears  this  out. 
Oppressions  continue.  The  Church  excuses  itself  for 
not  having  bestowed  attention  upon  the  conditions 
existinsr   in    Corinth    earlier.     Blow   succeeded   blow 

o 

unceasingly ;  the  persecution  did  not  spare  them  a 
moment  (i.  1).  Yet  the  Church  stood  perfectly  in- 
tact. We  hear  no  complaints  of  apostasy.  The 
Church   forms   an   organism   whose   combined   parts 


204    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG    THE    HEATHEN 

care  for  one  another  (xxxviii.  1,  2).  She  remembers 
all  her  members  in  intercession  before  God,  especially 
the  oppressed,  the  captives,  etc.  (lix.  4).  She  even 
expressly  states  that  many  of  her  members  have  had 
themselves  shut  up  in  prison  to  set  their  brethren 
free ;  others  have  even  sold  themselves  into  slavery 
to  feed  the  poor  with  the  proceeds  (Iv.  2).  Secularisa- 
tion has  given  place  to  the  other- worldliness  demanded 
by  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews.  The  Roman  Church 
describes  itself  officially  as  a  Church  of  sojourners. 
Its  most  prominent  characteristic  is  its  concern  for 
Christendom  everywhere,  as  Ignatius  also  (Ad.  Rom., 
iii.  1)  bears  witness.  It  was  felt  in  Rome  to  be  a 
duty  to  intervene  with  advice  and  action  where  there 
was  any  word  of  disorders  in  another  chin-ch.  Ac- 
cordingly this  letter  was  written,  and  with  the  letter 
an  embassy  went  to  Corinth  (Ixiii.  3,  Ixv,).  We  do 
not  learn  that  there  had  been  any  request  on  the  part 
of  Corinth  for  support  from  Rome.  It  is  true  that 
towards  its  close  the  tone  of  the  letter  shows  some- 
thing of  the  imperativeness  of  the  imperial  chancery, 
or  of  the  later  papal  secretariat ;  obedience  is  demanded 
for  that  which  the  Romans  in  the  Holy  Spirit  have 
written  (Iviii.  1,  Ixiii.  2) ;  the  disobedient  are  threatened 
with  eternal  damnation  (lix.  1).  But  this  insistence 
is  not  so  intended,  and  is  designed  to  give  weight  to 
the  counsel  of  Iviii.  2  ;  "  not  to  us  but  to  God's  will 
are  they  to  submit"  (Ivi.  1).  Not  desire  to  rule,  but 
brotherly  love  and  zeal  in  duty  dictated  the  letter. 
The  Romans  are  placed  in  genuine  grief  (xlvi.  9)  by 
the  conscience-confusing,  soul-endangering  circum- 
stances in  Corinth,  and  will  not  rejoice  till  they  hear 
that  peace  and  unity  are  again  restored. 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   205 

Christendom  feels  itself  to  be  a  unity,  but  it  is  a 
unity  in  love.  The  Romans  pray  that  God  may 
maintain  undiminished  the  number  of  the  elect  in 
the  whole  world  (lix.  2).  AVhat  a  difference  there  is 
between  the  statement  that  the  ringleaders  volun- 
tarily exiled  from  Corinth  could  everywhere  reckon 
on  a  good  reception  (liv.  3)  and  the  episcopal  pro- 
cedure against  heretics  and  schismatics  characteristic 
of  the  beginning  Catholicism !  How  very  different 
is  the  solution  here,  reckoning  as  it  does  on  freewill, 
from  what  we  find  in  the  episcopal  schisms  at  the 
time  of  the  Christian  empire,  when  military  power 
and  the  fists  of  monks,  sometimes  amid  unheard-of 
cruelties,  decided  the  question  and  '*  restored  the 
peace  of  the  Church " !  There  is  still  some  trace 
of  the  power  of  self-denying  love  which  we  admire 
in  the  Gentile  Apostle  and  his  concern  for  his 
own  people  to  be  detected  (Rom.  ix.  1  ff.),  when 
there  is  here  set  up  the  example  of  Moses,  who  would 
have  himself  blotted  out  of  the  book  of  life,  were  God 
not  to  forgive  the  people's  sin  (liii.,  cf.  Exod.  xxxii.  32). 

Yet  the  ideal  of  Christian  life  had  already  been 
materially  altered.  It  is  not  due  to  the  purpose  of 
the  letter  alone  that  the  principle  of  order  assumes 
such  importance.  Paul,  too,  desired  order,  but  an 
order  that  admitted  freedom  of  spiritual  development, 
order  arising  from  free  self-limitation.  Here,  sub- 
ordination to  the  divine  ordering  is  the  main  Christian 
duty,  "  Let  us  fear  the  Lord  Jesus,  be  humble  before 
our  leaders,  and  honour  the  elders"  (xxi.  6).  The 
organisation  of  the  Church  is  not  yet  based  directly 
on  the  Old  Testament  legislation.  The  latter  appears 
only  as  an  analogy,  as  a  proof  that  generally  speaking 


206    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

there  must  be  order  (xl.  f.,  xliii.).  The  order  spoken 
of  here  is  firmly  grooved,  and,  what  is  even  more 
eloquent,  there  is  already  a  finished  theory  of  it,  viz., 
apostolic  succession.  In  view  of  the  coming  struggles 
and  disorders,  the  apostles  not  only  settled  Church 
leaders  for  their  time,  but  also  arranged  that  in  every 
age  these  should  have  proper  successors.  Every 
deviation  in  the  organisation,  and  reactions  of  free 
spiritual  activity  above  all,  thus  come  to  be  regarded 
as  heresy.  This  lowers  the  ideal  much ;  but  in  this 
limited  form  the  ideal  is  evidently  reahsed  by  the 
Roman  Church :  a  constant  groove  with  powerful 
supervision,  and  the  subordination  of  all  members  to 
the  same. 

The  worship  has  also  undergone  some  alteration. 
The  conducting  of  it  is  now  confined  to  constant  hands. 
With  these  official  leaders  of  the  service  some  degree 
of  formality  in  prayer  and  teaching  was  developed. 
Whether  chapters  lix.  2-lxi.  hand  down  to  us  the 
Roman  common  prayer  of  the  time,  as  is  often  said, 
or  are  constructed  by  the  writer  with  the  free  employ- 
ment of  the  formulas  familiar  to  him  from  the  Church 
services  yet  with  reference  to  the  purpose  of  the  letter 
(von  der  Goltz),  they  show  that  there  were  already 
fixed  forms  of  prayer,  that  these  were  rich  in  words 
{cf.  the  numerous  doxologies,  Ixiv.,  Ixv.  2),  and  had 
lost  much  of  the  simplicity,  straightforwardness,  and 
modesty  of  the  ancient  time.  Still  it  is  a  prayer 
which  does  all  honour  to  the  earnest  moral  spirit  of 
the  praying  Church.  It  betrays  no  want  of  the  con- 
sciousness that  purity  of  heart  is  a  pre-condition  of 
prayer  (xxix.  1).  Similarly  with  the  didactic  and 
hortatory  passages  of  the  letter ;  to  some  extent  they 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   207 

are  only  in  loose  connection  with  the  letter's  purpose  ; 
they  are  lines  of  thought  which  the  author  did  not 
first  enter  upon  for  the  sake  of  the  Corinthians 
(Knopf).  Yet  my  opinion  is  that  he  worked  them 
all  over  again  afresh  in  their  bearing  on  the  questions 
that  confronted  him.  In  writing  to  a  foreign  church 
he  adopts  the  method  familiar  to  him  in  his  own 
preaching  (vii.  1).  The  sermon  had  assumed  certain 
stereotyped  forms.  The  extent  to  which  Old  Testa- 
ment examples,  after  the  manner  of  Hebrews  xi.,  are 
enumerated  in  order  to  inculcate  the  various  ethical 
notions,  and  the  bringing  together  of  so  many 
passages,  may  be  tiresome,  but  we  recognise  the  high 
moral  earnestness  and  the  impressiveness  with  which, 
as  a  rule,  ethical  questions,  much  less  purely  doctrinal 
ones,  were  handled  in  preaching. 

On  the  whole  it  is  a  Christianity  with  an  eminently 
practical  bent  that  this  Roman  Christian  represents, 
quite  in  the  style  of  the  first  Epistle  of  Peter  and  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews.  The  Pauline  formulas  of 
justification  by  faith,  not  through  themselves  or  their 
own  wisdom,  understanding,  piety  and  works,  are 
repeated,  but  they  have  become  formulas.  The 
righteousness  which  Paul  taught  the  whole  world 
(v.  7)  is  a  righteousness  of  deed  and  of  conduct,  a 
right-doing  {SiKaioTrpayia,  xxxii.  3,  cf.  XXX.  3,  xxxi.  2, 
xxxiii.  8).  Faith  is  obedience  (ix.  6) ;  and  along- 
side of  it  hospitality  takes  its  place  (x.  7,  xi.).  Joy 
in  doing  good  is  the  most  important  feature  in 
Christianity  next  to  that  subordination  to  divinely 
appointed  authority  (xxxiii.,  espec.  xxxiv.  2)  which 
firm  belief  in  God's  might  and  goodness  works  in 
men  (xi.  2,  xxxiv.  I  f.). 


208    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

Christianity  still  knows  that  God  calls  sinners  to 
salvation:  Rahab  the  prostitute  found  grace  (xii.).  It 
is  conscious  of  its  own  sinfulness,  and  prays  God 
for  forgiveness  (Ix.  1  f).  But  it  feels  itself  also  a 
Church  of  God  (mscr.) ;  the  pure  and  the  righteous, 
these  are  the  chosen  of  God  (xlvi.  4).  We  are 
forcibly  reminded  of  Hebrews  vi.  1  £,  when,  as  the 
chief  elements  of  catechetics,  first  repentance  (vii. 
4-viii.),  then  faith  (ix.-xii.),  then  moral  conduct  (in 
view  of  the  circumstances  in  Corinth  there  are  here 
specially  mentioned  humility,  contentedness,  unity, 
xiii.-xx.)  are  treated  {cf.  Ixii.  2).  There  is  a  Christian 
moral  training  of  youth,  an  instruction  in  the  fear  of 
God ;  it  is  the  duty  of  the  Christian  who  is  head  of 
a  house  to  guide  his  wife  in  the  right  way.  In  the 
bringing  up  of  children  precept  and  example  are  to 
be  united.  From  their  parents  the  children  are  to 
learn  the  power  of  humility  and  holy  love  with  God, 
the  beauty  and  greatness  of  the  fear  of  God,  and  the 
salvation  it  brings  to  all  who  with  pure  thought  walk 
holy  therein  (xxi.  6,  8).  A  Christian  is  judged 
essentially  by  the  testimony  borne  to  him  by  others, 
and  this  refers  in  the  main  to  his  moral  conduct 
(xliv.  3,  xlvii.  4,  cf.  xxxviii.  2,  xvii.  1).  A  fixed 
principle  of  judgment  is  thus  presupposed.  And  as  a 
fact  the  Christian  moral  ideal  is  already  fixed ;  there 
is  a  "traditional  standard"  {TrapaSoa-eco^  Kavdov)  to  be 
observed.  It  alone  is  "  beautiful,  joyous,  pleasant 
Mdth  God  our  Creator"  (vi.  2  f ).  It  is  defined  on  the 
one  hand  by  the  examples  and  precepts  of  the  Old 
Testament,  and  the  author  already  applies  the  Old 
Testament  expressions,  "  statutes  and  ordinances  of 
God  "  (ii.  8,  Iviii.  2)  to  these  commands  of  Christian 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE    INFLUENCE   209 

morality.  On  the  other  hand  it  is  based  upon  the 
words  and  the  example  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
(ii.  1,  xiii.  1,  xvi.  1,  17).  The  divine  order  of  nature 
is  also  adduced,  and  gives  the  general  tone  a  certain 
rationalistic  stamp  (xix.  2  fF.).  Christian  hope, 
though  less  strongly  to  the  front  than  in  the  earlier 
period,  still  forms  an  effective  motive  for  the  practical 
demonstration  of  Christianity  (xxiii.-xxvii,  xxxv.  4). 

There  is  one  advance  to  be  recognised  here. 
Moral  demands  now  go  deeper,  are  more  inward. 
Sanctification  was  shortly  defined  by  Paul  (1  Thess. 
iv.  3  ff.)  as  abstinence  from  heathen  unchastity  and 
deceitful  practices  in  business.  Here,  not  without 
regard  to  affairs  in  Corinth,  it  is  described  as  fleeing 
before  calumniation,  unchaste  and  unholy  unions,  and 
drunkenness,  lust  after  what  is  new,  and  abominable 
desires,  hateful  adultery,  and  disgusting  pride 
(xxx.  1). 

We  are  not  concerned  with  the  single  points,  nor 
with  the  order  which,  like  that  of  the  list  of  vices  put 
together  from  Paul's  reminiscences  (xxxv.  5),  shows 
want  of  systematic  aptness.  What  we  must  note  is 
that  the  thoughts  always  turn  from  the  gross  forms  of 
heathen  sin  to  what  is  inward  {cf.  xxi.  3).  Moral 
judgment  must  have  advanced,  ripened,  and  become 
fixed,  where  this  is  done  so  plainly. 

New  dangers,  it  is  true,  do  come  to  light,  especially 

that  of  spiritual  pride.     Already  there  is  a   wisdom 

which  is  fond  of  talking  instead  of  revealing  itself  in 

practice.     Paul  had  once  to  defend  the  claim  of  the 

weak  to  consideration  ;  now  there  is  shown  a  pompous 

humility,  i.e.,  a  kind  of  asceticism  which,  in  the  most 

striking   opposition   to   the   thoughts   of    the    I^ord, 

14 


; 


210    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

renews  the  hypocritical  method  of  Pharisaism ;  a 
vain-glorious  chastity  which  would  have  its  abstinence 
admired  as  a  wonderful  achievement,  forgetful  that 
it  is  God  who  lends  such  a  gift  to  men  (xxxviii.  2). 
Nevertheless,  the  Church  still  remembers  that  Paul 
once  wrote  to  the  Romans  about  the  duty  of  the 
strong  to  care  for  the  weak  and  of  the  weak  not  to 
judge  the  strong  (Rom.  xiv.  1  ff.),  and  she  makes  a 
wise  application  of  the  exhortation  to  the  different 
presuppositions  of  the  present  by  introducing  a 
practical  offset :  the  rich  are  to  care  for  the  poor,  and 
the  poor  to  pray  for  the  rich  (xxxviii.  2).  The 
Church  has  also  laid  to  heart  the  subordination  to 
authority  as  of  divine  appointment,  which  Paul 
inculcated  on  the  Romans  of  his  time.  She 
remembers  the  worldly  rulers  in  prayer  before  God, 
praying  for  their  health,  peace,  unity,  prosperity,  and 
exhorting  Christians  to  willing  obedience.  In  spite 
of  all  the  oppressions  which  proceed  from  them  there 
is  no  thought  of  rebellion.  In  the  glorification  of  her 
martyrs  (v.,  vi.)  she  herself  learns  the  joy  of  confession 
even  in  suffering. 

Here  too,  therefore,  Christianity  took  its  essential 
form  from  Paul.  The  way  in  which  he  was  looked 
up  to,  and  the  importance  which  was  attached  to  his 
letters,  show  that  the  Christians  were  modestly  aware 
of  their  own  inferiority.  Yet  the  Church  knows 
herself  still  to  be  filled  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  and  the 
fact  that  she  was  able  at  least  to  imitate  (xlix.)  the 
Pauline  hymn  on  love  (1  Cor.  xiii.)  is  a  brilliant  proof 
of  her  moral  spirit. 

The  state  of  matters  in  the  Corinthian  Church 
about  the  same  time  is  in  complete  opposition  to  the 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE    INFLUENCE   211 

consciousness  and  solidity  of  the  Roman  Church.  1 
Here,  too,  the  first  Epistle  of  Clement  gives  us  very 
valuable  testimony.  The  characteristics  of  this 
Church  in  the  year  95  are  most  interesting,  as  they 
constantly  challenge  comparison  with  the  peculiarly 
accurate  presentment  of  the  early  Christian  life 
which  we  possess  in  the  first  Epistle  of  Paul  to  the 
Corinthians.  We  observe  here  the  truth  that  every 
separate  Church  has  an  individual  character.  How- 
ever much  the  circumstances  have  changed  in  the 
forty  years  since  the  Apostle's  epistle,  it  is  still  in 
ground  the  same  features  which  meet  us  again,  want 
of  steadfast  Church  consciousness,  individualism 
which  makes  itself  felt  in  licentiousness,  rebellion 
against  every  authority,  extravagant  valuation  of 
spiritual  gifts  and  their  free  utterance.  We  are  not 
to  suppose  that  the  irregularities  which  occupy  the 
first  Epistle  of  Clement  stand  in  any  outward  relation 
with  that  party- spirit  in  Corinth  already  combated 
by  Paul.  But  the  roots  are  the  same,  and  out  of 
them  there  are  always  wild  shoots  issuing  afresh. 

The  letter  of  the  Romans  starts  from  a  picture  of 
Church  life  in  Corinth  as  it  was  before  the  unwhole- 
some chill  of  discord  destroyed  its  bloom.  This 
passage  is  worth  quoting  in  its  entirety  :  "  Who,"  the 
Christians  of  Rome  write  (i.  2),  "  that  sojourned 
among  you,  did  not  approve  your  most  virtuous  and 
steadftist  faith  ?  Who  did  not  admire  your  sober  and 
forbearing  piety  in  Christ?  Who  did  not  publish 
abroad  your  magnificent  disposition  to  hospitality  ? 
Who  did  not  congratulate  you  on  your  perfect  and 
sound  knowledge  ?  3,  For  ye  did  all  things  without 
respect  of  persons,  and  ye  walked  after  the  ordinances 


212     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

of  God,  submitting  yourselves  to  your  rulers,  and 
rendering  to  the  older  men  among  you  the  honour 
which  is  their  due.  On  the  young,  too,  ye  enjoined 
modesty  and  seemly  thoughts,  and  the  women  ye 
charged  to  perform  all  their  duties  in  a  blameless 
and  seemly  and  pure  conscience,  cherishing  their  own 
husbands  as  is  meet ;  and  ye  taught  them  to  keep  in 
the  rule  of  obedience,  and  to  manage  the  affairs  of 
their  household  in  seemliness,  with  all  discretion,  ii.  1, 
And  ye  were  all  lowly  in  mind  and  free  from  arro- 
gance, yielding  rather  than  claiming  submission,  more 
glad  to  give  than  to  receive,  and  content  with  the 
provisions  which  Christ  supplieth,  and  not  wishing  for 
more ;  ye  laid  up  His  words  diligently  in  your  hearts, 
and  His  sufferings  were  before  your  eyes.  2.  Thus 
a  profound  and  rich  peace  was  given  to  all,  and  an 
insatiable  desire  to  do  good.  An  abundant  out- 
pouring also  of  the  Holy  Spirit  fell  upon  all ;  3,  and 
being  full  of  holy  counsel,  in  excellent  zeal,  and  with 
a  pious  confidence,  ye  stretched  out  your  hands  to 
Almighty  God,  supplicating  Him  to  be  propitious,  if 
unwillingly  ye  had  committed  any  sin.  4.  Ye  had 
conflict  day  and  night  for  all  the  brotherhood,  that 
the  number  of  His  elect  might  be  saved,  with  fearful- 
ness  and  intent ness  of  mind.  5.  Ye  were  sincere 
and  simple,  and  free  from  malice  one  toward  another. 
6.  Every  sedition  and  every  schism  was  abominable 
to  you.  Ye  mourned  over  the  transgressions  of  your 
neighbours  :  ye  judged  their  shortcomings  to  be  your 
own.  Ye  repented  not  of  any  well-doing,  but  were 
ready  unto  every  good  work.  8.  Being  adorned  with 
a  most  virtuous  and  honourable  life,  ye  performed  all 
your  duties  in  the  fear  of  Him.     The  commandments 


CHURCHES    UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   213 

and  the  ordinances  of  the  Lord  were  written  on  the 
tables  of  your  heart." 

Truly  a  precious  picture,  doing  honour  as  much  to 
the  Roman  as  to  the  Corinthian  Church !  It  shows 
in  the  first  place  where  the  excellences  of  Christianity 
were  conceived  to  lie.  We  inay  be  sure  the  choice 
of  what  is  specially  praised  is  partly  determined  by  its 
opposition  to  the  conditions  of  the  time.  But  the 
whole  compilation  remains  a  valuable  document  of 
the  ordinary  conception  of  the  moral  ideal  of  life 
in  a  Christian  community.  The  moral  activities 
are  entirely  practical.  It  is  no  longer  a  matter  of 
getting  rid  of  heathen  scandals  and  vices.  The 
Christian  ideal  is  thoroughly  positive,  determined 
on  the  one  hand  by  Old  Testament  thoughts  (i.  3, 
ii.  8),  and  on  the  other  by  the  words  and  pattern  of 
the  Lord  (ii.  1).  The  whole  brotherhood  is  the 
subject  of  intercession,  and  hospitality  has  the  lead- 
ing place  among  the  virtues.  The  Church  life  has 
assumed  constant  forms ;  subordination  to  leaders, 
here,  for  special  reasons,  made  especially  prominent, 
is  Christian  duty.  The  Church  exercises  a  pedagogic 
influence  on  the  individual  members,  especially  the 
young  and  the  women.  The  life  of  prayer  is  pure ; 
brotherly  love  is  maintained ;  the  highest  effort  is 
doing  good.  Everywhere  we  feel  ourselves  strongly 
reminded  of  the  first  Epistle  of  Peter. 

But  our  passage  is  also  a  witness  that  this  ideal 
was  no  Utopia.  In  Corinth  it  had  been  at  least 
occasionally  realised.  The  intention  to  idealise 
always  prevails,  in  order  that  on  the  brilliant  back- 
ground of  the  past  the  present  hateful  stain,  the 
unholy  and   filthy  disturbance   which  some  perverse 


214     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

and  impudent  persons  have  caused,  may  appear  all 
the  more  distinct!  We  must  not,  without  further 
ado,  put  the  witness  aside  as  untrue.  We  have  to 
take  by  way  of  supplement  the  development  which, 
according  to  the  Roman  letter,  followed.  The  sad 
state  of  the  present  is  not,  as  Clement  represents, 
simply  the  perversion  of  the  earlier ;  it  is  only  another 
and  gloomier  side  of  the  same  picture,  which  now 
comes  into  the  foreground. 

In  iii.  1  we  have  a  repetition  of  Deut.  xxxii.  15  : 
"  The  beloved  ate  and  drank,  waxed  fat,  grew  thick, 
and  kicked.  (2.)  Hence  came  emulation  and  envy, 
strife  and  contention,  persecution  and  disorder,  war 
and  captivity.  (3.)  So  the  dishonest  exalted  them- 
selves against  the  honourable,  the  worthless  against 
men  of  note,  the  wise  against  the  foolish,  the  young 
against  the  old.  (4.)  So  righteousness  and  peace 
departed  far  away,  because  every  man  abandoned  the 
fear  of  God,  and  became  blind  in  his  faith,  neither 
walked  in  the  precepts  of  his  appointment,  nor  acted 
as  becomes  the  Christian,  but  proceeded  each  after 
the  desires  of  his  wicked  heart  in  unrighteous  and 
godless  envy." 

This  is  a  picture,  in  the  language  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment prophets,  of  the  falling  away  from  the  right 
fear  of  God,  of  the  rebellion  of  individualism  against 
the  authority  of  divine  law,  and  of  subjectivity 
against  every  objective  standard.  But  what  actually 
happened  ? 

If  we  gather  together  the  scattered  indications  of 
the  epistle,  the  following  picture  is  the  result. 

Some  of  the  Church  leaders — Presbyters  they  are 
called   (xliv.   4),  who  probably  presided  over  divine 


CHURCHES   UNDER   PAULINE   INFLUENCE   215 

service — have  been  removed  from  office  by  the 
Church.  Yet  the  Church  had  not  taken  this  step 
out  of  free  impulse.  Behind  it  lurk  some  few 
individuals,  of  whom  the  Romans  speak  with  a 
certain  amount  of  contempt,  calling  them  ambitious 
busybodies  (i.  1,  xiv.  1,  xxi.  5).  On  the  other  hand 
it  must  not  be  overlooked  that  not  simple  excom- 
munication is  claimed  against  these ;  a  cessation  of 
the  conflict  is  looked  for  from  their  own  good  sense ; 
they  are  voluntarily  to  depart  from  Corinth,  and  so 
bring  the  quarrel  to  an  end  (Ivii.). 

It  may  be  questioned  if  only  personal  ambition, 
passion  for  affairs,  and  evil  tongues  are  to  blame  for 
this  confusion.  Among  the  numerous  new  explana- 
tions, the  one  which  seems  to  me  to  be  best  in 
accordance  with  the  sources,  is  that  which  sees  in 
these  Corinthian  errors  a  significant  moment  in  the 
great  crisis  which  was  caused  in  most  of  the  Churches 
by  the  establishment  of  a  fixed  ecclesiastical  con- 
stitution. Such  a  consolidation  of  management  was 
bound  to  come.  That  we  learned  already  from 
the  defects  of  Church  life  combated  by  Paul. 
The  transition  from  purely  voluntary  service  on  the 
part  of  single  individuals,  which  at  the  same  time 
involved  more  or  less  a  leadership  of  the  comnmnity, 
to  a  regulated  responsible  management  through  a 
Church  council  and  Church  officials,  was  necessary, 
and  therefore  justified  and  useful.  But  indeed  it 
could  not  happen  without  great  injury  to  the  en- 
thusiastic element.  The  ministers  of  the  Spirit  were 
forced  out  of  their  leading  position ;  they  had  to 
renounce  the  unconfined  freedom  of  their  spiritual 
utterances.     That  did  not  happen  without  a  struggle. 


216    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

The  quarrel  in  Corinth  is  a  sequel  to  this.  The 
matter  is  not  one  of  the  introduction  of  the  Presby- 
terian forin,  but  of  the  attempt,  in  a  reactionary 
assertion  of  the  ancient  privileges  of  the  ministers  of 
the  Spirit  (xlviii.  5),  to  overthrow  the  already  existing 
and  adopted  order. 

The  Romans  can  throw  into  the  scale  a  theory 
which  presupposes  the  longer  existence  of  the  com- 
bated regulation.  Therein  lay,  treated  from  the 
moral  point  of  view,  the  wrong  of  the  momentarily 
victorious  opposition.  The  enthusiasm  which  it 
represented,  once  justified  as  the  natural  form  of 
primitive  inspiration,  became  morally  dangerous, 
when  the  historical  development  had  gone  beyond  it 
to  a  more  fixed  form  of  Church  organisation.  Thus 
M^e  are  compelled  to  count  it  to  the  credit  of  the 
ringleaders  who  are  so  sharply  combated  by  Clement, 
that  they  were  fighting  not  out  of — or  not  only  out 
of — -selfish  motives,  ambition,  love  of  dominion,  and 
so  forth,  but  in  the  interest  of  a  definite  principle. 
It  is  proved  in  ground  indeed,  as  Clement  shows, 
that  in  the  main  it  was  through  their  fault  that 
disorder  entered  the  Church,  disturbed  the  unity, 
inflamed  the  passions,  and  so  did  serious  harm  to  the 
whole  body  of  the  Church.  Entirely  occupied  with 
the  conflicts  in  their  own  midst,  they  could  no  longer 
discharge  satisfactorily  the  duties  of  hospitality  or 
care  for  strange  brethren.  All  that  formerly  made 
Corinth  famous  was  now  looked  for  in  vain. 

On  the  other  hand  we  are  not  to  forget  that  this 
conflict  is  the  only  thing  with  which  fault  is  to  be 
found  in  the  Church  of  Corinth.  With  all  the  detail 
of  the  letter,  it  goes  into  no  troubles   that   are  not 


CHURCHES   UNDER    PAULINE   INFLUENCE   217 

connected  with  that  main  defect.  On  the  contrary 
the  author  concludes  with  real  praise  of  the  Corin- 
thians. They  are  trustworthy  and  highly-respected 
men,  deeply  versed  in  the  words  of  divine  discipline 
(Ixii.  3).  We  have  no  right  to  look  upon  all  the  more 
strongly-pitched  tones  of  the  exhortation  as  signs  of 
defects  among  the  Corinthians,  and  to  push  aside 
those  explanations  which  are  to  their  honour. 

There  is  no  longer  any  word  of  the  insufficient 
moral  judgment  in  questions  of  sexual  life  which 
Paul  had  once  to  combat,  of  the  fondness  for  going 
to  law,  of  the  want  of  modesty  in  the  appearance  of 
the  women,  and  in  the  celebration  of  the  Lord's 
Supper.  Only  the  love  of  disputes,  the  impulse  to 
assert  their  own  individuality,  has  remained. 

Up  to  this  point  we  find  within  the  Pauline  Church  ! 
a  quite  normal  development,  a  moral  maturing  and 
gaining  strength,  in  which  something  of  the  old 
freedom  and  joy  was  lost,  but  which  exerted  a  favour- 
able influence  on  the  whole  body.  The  development 
naturally  is  not  one  of  simple  progress.  Times  of 
elevation  were  followed  by  periods  of  depression. 
Quarrels  as  to  constitution  and  doctrinal  errors  break 
over  the  Churches.  These  continue  to  bear  a  very 
different  local  character.  At  bottom,  however,  there 
was  agreement  in  spite  of  all  the  variety,  and  that  is 
the  more  to  be  wondered  at,  because  as  yet  there  was 
lacking  the  unity  of  direction  which  existed  in  the 
time  of  the  Apostle  Paul. 

Now,  however,  other  factors  appear  in  the  midst  of 
Gentile  Christendom,  and  these  must  be  valued 
before  we  can  rightly  understand  the  development  of 
those  communities. 


LATER  CHRISTIANITY  AMONG  THE  HEATHEN. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  Johannean  Circle. 

Towards  the  end  of  the  century  we  again  find  a 
dominating  personality  similar  to  Paul,  whose 
influence  extended  over  a  whole  circle  of  Churches 
and  impressed  its  mark  on  them.  This  was  John  of 
Ephesus.  Whatever  the  real  facts  about  this  much- 
debated  individual  may  be,  there  can  be  little  doubt 
that  for  the  Christianity  of  Asia  Minor  he  was  of 
decisive  significance.  John,  like  Paul,  was  a  Jew ; 
I  believe  we  may  say  more  definitely,  a  Jerusalem 
Jew.  But  his  line  of  development  was  quite  different 
from  Paul's.  In  the  first  place  he  had  seen  the  Lord 
Himself,  and  in  His  last  period  had  come  into  contact 
with  Him,  although  he  did  not  belong  to  the  twelve 
regular  companions  of  Christ.  He  continued,  how- 
ever, in  that  Jewish  Christian  circle,  which,  as  we 
have  seen,  had  its  home  in  Jerusalem ;  certainly  not 
so  zealous  for  the  law  as  James,  but  just  as  little 
following  the  free,  bold  flight  of  the  Hellenists. 
Later  on,  and  in  advanced  years,  he  came  to  Asia 
Minor,  where,  like  Peter,  he  made  himself  at  home 
with  the  already  fixed  Gentile  Christianity.  He 
lived  in  closest  communion  with  the  Christians, 
without    enquiring   whether    they    were   heathen    or 

218 


THE   JOHANNEAN    CIRCLE  219 

Jews.  But  a  heathen,  as  such,  still  repels  him. 
He  insists  that  the  missionaries  who  go  out  from 
him  shall  not  accept  anything  from  the  heathen 
(III.  7).  The  thought  of  meat  offered  to  idols  is 
quite  horrible  to  him  (Apoc.  ii.  14,  20,  I.  v.  21). 
Here  we  trace  the  spirit  of  the  so-called  apostolic 
decree,  not  that  of  Paul.  As  the  presbyter,  the 
teacher,  the  man  who  looked  back  to  the  primitive 
age  of  Christianity,  he  stands  in  the  midst  of  a 
Christianity  which  already  clearly  betrays  signs  of  a 
new  period.  An  upright  pillar  of  the  past,  he  saw 
his  chief  duty  to  lie  in  the  conservation  of  the  old, 
the  maintaining  of  Christianity  in  its  original  form. 
"That  which  was  from  the  beginning"  (I.  i.  1),  he 
will  hand  down  to  the  Christians  of  his  time :  he  will 
strengthen  them  in  what  they  have  heard  from  the 
beginning  (I.  ii.  7,  iii.  11).  "That  which  ye  have, 
hold  fast"  (Apoc.  ii.  25,  cf.  iii.  3,  11).  This  old 
Christianity,  however,  is  to  him  the  practical  Chris- 
tianity, the  religion  of  brotherly  love.  The  old  and 
yet  ever  new  commandment  which  we  have  received 
from  Him,  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  is  that  we 
should  love  one  another  (II.  5  f.,  I.  ii.  7,  iii.  11,  23,  iv. 
7  ff.,  21).  The  presbyter  is  a  prophet:  he  views  the 
future  in  mighty  pictures.  But  the  prospect  of  the 
end,  the  longingly-expected  appearance  of  the  Lord 
(Apoc.  xxii.  20),  only  serves  to  strengthen  loyalty  in 
obedience  to  cominands,  and  to  stimulate  the  repent- 
ance of  the  erring  (I.  ii.  18,  28,  Apoc.  ii.  5,  16,  iii. 
11,  20),  as  with  Paul  (Rom.  xiii.  11,  Phil.  iv.  5). 
The  whole  Apocalypse  only  serves  as  foil  to  these 
exhortations.  The  prophetic  spirit  shows  its  power 
in  exhortation.     A  note  of  victory  runs  through  the 


220    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

whole:  Christ  is  the  ruler  of  kings  (Apoc.  i.  5) ;  our 
faith  is  the  victory  which  overcometh  the  world  (I.  v. 
4  f.,  c/!  ii.  13  f.).  The  conqueror  receives  the  reward 
(Apoc.  ii.  7,  11,  17,  26,  iii.  5,  12,  21). 

Moving  about  himself  and  despatching  his   mes- 
sengers, this  John  dominated  from  Ephesus,  as  centre, 
the   greatest   section    of  the   Asia  Minor  Churches. 
He  formed  a  school,  as  we  shall  afterwards  see.     Yet 
there  were  not  wanting  conflicts  here. 
/      We  look  first  at  Diotrephes,  the  leader  of  one  of 
these  churches  (III.  9).     He  will  not  recognise  the 
authority    of   this    Ephesian    John.       He    withholds 
John's  letters  from  the  Church,  does  not  receive  his 
messengers,  and  even  demands  that  others  shall  turn 
them  away.     The  attempt,  to  be  sure,  was  not  al- 
together successful.     The  presbyter  has  a  circle   of 
true  followers  there,  who  rally  round   Gains.     This 
Gains  receives  messengers  from  John,  shows  them  hos- 
pitality, and  will,  as  the  presbyter  confidently  hopes, 
take  good    care  also  of  the  Demetrius  commended 
to  him.     But  these  followers  form  only  a  small  circle 
of  people  forced  out  of  the  Church  by  Diotrephes, 
personal  friends,  who  are  greeted  by  name  (III.  15). 
What  in   all  the  world  causes  Diotrephes  to  adopt 
this  role  ?     Of  difference  of  doctrine  we  hear  nothing. 
Could    it    have    been    only   personal    ambition   that 
would  not   grant   priority  to   the   distant   presbyter 
and  his  ambassadors  ?     Did  Diotrephes  do  something 
worse  for  which  he  did  not  wish  to  be  brought  to 
account  ?     The  disgraceful  works,  which  the  presbyter 
will  expose  at  his  next  visit,  are  probably  no  more 
than  the  speeches   which   Diotrephes  makes  against 
him,  and  the  way  in  which  he  treats  his  ambassadors, 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  221 

in  short,  his  opposition  to  the  presbyter's  authority. 
But  what  is  the  explanation  of  this  ?  Harnack  has 
discovered  the  key.  It  is  an  attempt  to  withdraw 
the  independence  of  single  communities  from  the 
over-reaching  guardianship  of  the  charismatic  itinerant 
preachers.  It  is  a  small  part  of  the  great  constitu- 
tional conflict,  which,  as  we  saw,  and  shall  presently 
see  more  distinctly,  moved  Christianity  towards  the 
end  of  the  century  and  matured  very  doubtful  moral 
consequences. 

Personal  ambition  may,  of  course,  have  contributed 
in  single  cases.  But  it  is  as  little  to  be  denied  that 
real  interest  demanded  a  more  fixed  consolidation. 
In  the  special  case  before  us  it  was  anxiety  about 
the  authority  of  the  "  inspired,"  which  in  some 
measure  was  uncontrollable.  "  Trust  not  every  spirit  " 
held  good  in  the  circle  of  the  presbyter  too,  and  a 
definite  confession  was  required  as  criterion  (I.  iv.  1  fF.). 
Only  one  step  further  and  there  was  rebellion  against 
all  utterances  of  the  Spirit.  Everyone  did  not  possess 
the  greatness  of  Paul,  who  at  once  warns  against 
over-spirituality  and  exhorts,  "  Quench  not  the  Spirit, 
despise  not  prophesyings "  (1  Thess.  v.  19  f.).  To 
the  Christians  of  Asia  Minor,  it  was  easier  and  it 
seemed  surer  to  keep  these  uncertain  spirits  from 
themselves  and  their  Church.  To  be  sure  this 
was  a  one-sided  step,  and  the  one-sidedness  was 
punished  through  the  dispeace  which  it  brought  into 
the  Church,  perhaps  still  more  by  a  certain  stagna- 
tion. Diotrephes  is  a  type  of  that  ecclesiasticism  ) 
which  will  not  for  anything  have  the  peaceful 
development  of  the  Church  disturbed  by  excitement 
from  without,  and  so  loses  impulses  of  the  greatest 


CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

/value.  On  the  other  hand,  the  presbyter  is  himself 
no  less  one-sided  when  he  judges  the  opponents  of  his 
authority  only  by  the  evil  side,  and  increases  the 
tension  through  deliberate  magnifying  of  the  oppo- 
sition between  the  circle  of  friends  and  the  Church, 
i.e.,  the  majority  which  holds  by  Diotrephes.  It  is 
the  way  of  pious  itinerary  preaching  to  strive  ever  to 
chain  its  conventicles  more  narrowly  to  itself,  even  at 
the  expense  of  the  Church's  unity.  We  shall  not  be 
shaken  in  this  judgment  by  the  charming  picture 
which  Jerome  gives  of  the  old  John,  as,  in  his  age 
and  weakness,  he  has  to  be  borne  to  the  assembly 
repeating  always  the  one  word,  "  Children,  love  one 
another."  Certainly  John  is  the  apostle  of  love. 
But  the  peacemakers  are  often  the  keenest  shouters 
in  dispute. 

The  motives  of  both  sides  become  entirely  clear 
when  we  take  note  of  a  second  conflict  which  has 
nothing  in  common  with  the  former,  but  still  nuist 
have  exercised  a  significant  influence  on  it. 

It  is  not  quite  clear  how  far  the  propaganda  issuing 
from  the  presbyter  and  spreading  over  a  wide  circle 
of  Asia  Minor,  aimed  at  missionary  work  among  the 
heathen  or  only  at  confirming  Christians,  but  there 
was  also  a  propaganda  of  false  teaching,  the  caricature, 
so  to  speak,  of  the  other. 

What  makes  this  second  movement  so  suspicious 
is  that  it  is  a  divergence  of  the  Johannean  school 
itself.  "  They  went  out  from  us,  but  they  were  not 
of  us"  (I.  ii.  19).  The  presbyter  had  fashioned  a 
speech  peculiar  to  his  school.  Christianity  was  the 
truth,  God  must  be  known  (I.  ii.  3).  To  that  end  it 
was  necessary  to  be  born  of  God  ;  then  God  shall  be 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  223 

seen  as  the  only-begotten  saw  Him  (I.  iii.  2).  God 
was  light,  and  the  Christians  are  to  be  children  of 
light  (I.  i.  5),  That  was  all  conceived  in  the  Spirit  of 
the  Old  Testament,  and  moral  in  intention.  In  the 
Gentile  mind,  however,  it  must  have  called  forth 
quite  different  thoughts.  The  Gentiles  supposed  a 
light-nature  in  God  to  be  meant,  and  therefore  only 
one  who  bore  something  of  that  light  in  him  could 
enter  into  God's  secret  essence.  The  truth  which 
had  to  be  known  was  to  them  speculative  ;  everything 
was  natural  and  metaphysical.  We  are  not  con- 
cerned here  with  the  way  in  which  this  influenced 
Christology  in  causing  a  sepai-ation  between  the  non- 
suffering  spiritual  being  called  Christ  and  the  man 
Jesus.  The  presbyter  and  his  followers  defend 
against  this  "progressive  Christianity  "  (II.  9),  the  old 
confession  of  Jesus  Christ  as  a  historical  personality, 
Who  in  full  and  real  manhood  brought  us  the  complete 
revelation  of  God's  nature.  More  important  for  us 
is  the  difference  in  the  moral  domain.  Here  in  the 
hands  of  false  teachers  John's  remark,  "  The  Christian 
does  no  sin,"  became  something  entirely  different. 
"  The  man  of  light  cannot  sin ;  whatever  he  does  is 
no  sin"  (I.  iii.  6,  v.  18).  The  moral  conscience  of 
Christendom  reacts  against  this  in  the  most  express 
way,  as  we  clearly  perceive  from  a  number  of  passages 
in  the  first  epistle  (I.  i.  6,  10,  ii.  4,  9,  iii.  4,  6  ff ).  It 
is  a  similar  situation  to  that  which  arises  in  the 
polemic  of  the  Epistle  of  James  against  the  misuse 
of  Pauline  formulae.  The  original  sense,  which  has 
become  entirely  perverted  through  the  reversal  of 
the  main  notion,  must  be  guarded  by  correcting  or 
supplementing  the  formula  itself. 


224    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

So  the  two  tendencies  stand  in  hostility  to  one 
another,  feeUng  a  relationship  and  yet  more  strongly 
an  antipathy.  The  presbyter's  contribution  was  to 
bring  things  to  an  open  breach.  He  demands  simple 
excommunication  of  any  one  who  is  not  correct  in 
the  main  point  of  doctrine,  the  uncompromising 
confession  of  Jesus  Christ ;  even  the  brotherly 
greeting  is  to  be  denied  him  (II.  10  f.). 

This  harshness  may  have  been  demanded  by  the 
circumstances :  the  presbyter  may  have  thought  it 
impossible  to  become  master  of  the  enemy  in  any 
other  fashion.  Paul  also  employs  the  greatest 
severity  against  the  Jewish  agitators.  But  this  pro- 
cedure of  the  presbyter  reminds  us  more  of  the 
;  attitude  of  the  Epistle  of  Jude  towards  gnostic  anti- 
i  nomianism.  It  reveals  the  painful  dread  of  the  con- 
i  tagious  power  of  heresy,  which  is  shared  by  so  many 
Church  theologians  of  the  later  centuries  with  the 
Pharisees  ;  it  goes  hand  in  hand  with  the  abhorrence 
of  everything  heathen.  The  best  illustration  we 
have  of  this  is  the  well-known  narrative  of  Poly  carp. 
John  and  Cerinthus  meet  in  the  bath  :  "  Let  us  flee," 
shouts  the  former,  horrified  at  seeing  the  heretic,  "  the 
house  might  fall  where  Cerinthus,  the  enemy  of 
truth,  is."  (Irenasus,  III.  iii.  4.)  We  should  more  easily 
understand  this  debarring  of  false  teaching  if  one  of 
the  lascivious  forms  of  gnosticism  which  we  have 
yet  to  become  acquainted  with  were  concerned,  for 
in  that  case  it  would  be  of  importance  to  avoid 
contact  with  the  shamed  garment.  But  however 
likely  a  theory  like  that  of  the  light  nature  which  is 
incapable  of  sin  might  make  such  a  thing,  we  have 
no  indication  of  it  in  the  Epistles  of  John.     The  evil 


THE   JOHANNEAN    CIRCLE  225 

works  in  which  the  Christians  are  not  to  partake  (II. 
11),  are,  as  in  the  case  of  Diotrephes,  the  intrigues  of 
those  who  were  unfriendly  to  the  author.  Otherwise 
he  reproaches  them  only  with  want  of  brotherly  love 
(II.  vi.  f.,  I.  ii.  9,  iii.  10,  iv.  8,  20).  That  Hes  in  the 
nature  of  the  thing  :  conflicts  of  the  kind  were  bound 
to  break  up  the  community ;  the  presbyter  makes 
the  breach  complete.  Again,  it  is  quite  intelligible 
that  those  gnostics,  while  zealously  carrying  on  pro- 
paganda among  the  Christians,  looked  down  in  a  very 
superior  way  on  these  ordinary  Christians.  Here,  too, 
the  truth  of  Paul's  word  that  gnosticism  pufFeth  up 
must  have  been  verified.  It  is  a  fact  always  to  be 
observed  that  one-sided  intellectualism  with  its 
speculative  inclinations  causes  practical  unfruitfulness. 
Johannean  Christianity,  with  its  emphasising  of 
practical  activity  and  of  thoroughgoing  brotherly 
love,  was  indeed  a  different  thing. 

A  somewhat  modified,  or  at  any  rate  very  much 
more  detailed,  picture  of  this  Johannean  Christianity 
is  given  by  the  seven  apocalyptic  letters  (Apoc.  ii.,  iii.), 
one  of  the  inost  valuable  documents  which  early 
Christianity  hands  down  for  our  particular  purpose. 

In  these  letters  we  possess  short  but  comprehensive 

descriptions  of  seven  Asia  Minor  Churches,  entirely 

from  the  moral  point  of  view ;    the  seer  pronounces 

a  regular  verdict  on  each.     It  is  to  be  noticed  that 

of  the  seven  Church  towns  only  two  are  known  to  us 

from  the  Pauline  time  ;  Christianity  has  spread  widely. 

Each    one  of   these   Churches    has    had    a    separate 

development.      Five  of  them  receive  praise,  though 

with    limitations ;    only   two   are   directly   censured. 

On  the  whole  the  result  is  favourable.     The  Churches 

15 


226    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

appear  as  shining  lights  (i.  20).  What  does  the  seer 
find  to  praise  ?  In  the  MetropoHs  Ephesus,  he  lauds 
the  works,  the  afflictions,  the  patience,  and  the 
turning  away  from  all  false  teaching ;  in  Smyrna,  the 
inward  wealth  in  spite  of  outward  oppression  and 
poverty,  and  fidelity  in  suffering.  Pergamum,  the 
town  of  emperor  worship,  is  praised  for  steadfastness 
of  confession  even  in  martyrdom.  Thyatira  is 
credited  with  works  :  love,  faith,  readiness  of  service, 
patience,  an  increase  of  Christian  activity,  and,  in  one 
section,  conflict  with  heresy.  This  applies  also  to  the 
otherwise  reproached  Sardis.  In  Philadelphia  there 
is  united  with  joyousness  of  confession  an  active 
missionary  zeal  in  spite  of  little  resources  ;  it  is 
evidently  the  pattern  Church.  Then  comes  the 
censure :  Ephesus  has  forsaken  its  first  love  and 
must  be  awakened  to  repentant  return  to  its  earlier 
works.  Smyrna  needs  only  to  be  exhorted  to  further 
fidelity  and  steadfastness  in  suffering.  In  Pergamum 
a  small  minority  has  given  itself  over  to  heresy.  In 
Thyatira,  this  plays  a  great  role.  Things  are  worst  of 
all  in  Sardis  and  Laodicea :  the  former  is  dead  in 
all  its  limbs,  sleeping  without  any  signs  of  life,  while 
the  latter,  not  cold  and  not  warm,  imagines  itself  to 
be  rich,  and  does  not  know  how  miserable,  pitiable, 
poor,  blind,  and  naked  it  is. 

Thus  the  Spirit  of  God  judges  the  Churches  by  the 
mouth  of  the  prophet,  and  from  this  point  threats 
and  promises  are  distributed.  Before  all,  there  is  a 
twofold  fight  to  be  waged.  The  external  conflict  is 
the  less  dangerous.  Hatred  of  the  Jews  (ii.  9,  iii.  9), 
and  the  intolerance  of  emperor- worship  (ii.  13), 
threaten  with  persecution  and  martyrdom.     In  most 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  227 

instances  this  serves  only  to  confirm  and  strengthen 
faith.  Joy  in  martyrdom  finds  repeated  and  spirited 
expression  {cf.  vi.  9  fF.).  The  special  danger  threatens 
from  the  side  of  heresy,  which  is  described  symboli- 
cally as  the  works  of  the  Nicolaitans,  the  doctrine  of 
Balaam,  and  Jezebel-doings. 

It  may  indeed  be  questioned  if  the  same  thing  is 
everywhere  meant ;  the  false  Apostles  (ii.  2,  e.g.)  may 
be  other  teachers.  In  the  fundamental  features,  how- 
ever, there  will  be  agreement.  What  the  seer  has  in 
view  is  a  speculative  gnosticism  (ii.  24),  which  he/ 
considers  only  in  its  practical  aspect  of  licentious 
libertinism,  which  had  no  scruple  in  entering  heathen- 
dom with  all  its  usages  and  abuses.  The  author 
speaks  of  eating  meat  offered  to  idols  and  doing 
fornication.  This  expression,  it  is  true,  belongs  to  the 
Old  Testament  symboHc.  It  is  the  description  of 
how  God's  people  forgot  its  holiness  and  yielded  to 
the  religion  and  usages  of  the  Canaanites.  It  may 
be  figuratively  intended  ;  or  the  actual  words  may 
connect  themselves  with  something  different.  It  is 
indeed  possible  that  we  have  here  to  do  with  one 
of  those  forms  of  gnosticism  which  exalted  the 
filthiest  immorality  to  a  principle — the  speculative 
foundation  points  that  way  ;  but  just  as  easily  it  can 
be  a  freer  attitude  to  heathendom,  such  as  we  saw 
adopted  by  a  section  of  the  Corinthians,  and  due  to 
a  one-sided  comprehension  of  Pauline  teaching.  A 
connection  with  Pauline  thoughts  is  evident  in  Asia 
Minor  and  is  made  more  likely  by  the  fact  that  here  and 
there  influences  of  Pauline  terminology  are  revealed. 
As  in  Corinth,  emancipated  women,  who  gave  them- 
selves out  as  prophetesses,  appear  to  have  played  a 


228    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

leading  role ;  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  this  free- 
thought  had  immorality  as  a  consequence.  The  seer 
at  any  rate  faces  the  whole  movement  with  the 
greatest  suspicion.  The  great  harlot  symbolises  for 
him  the  world-power  hostile  to  God  (xvii.  1  fF.).  His 
ideal  is  the  complete  antithesis  of  everything  heathen. 
He  even  goes  so  far  as  to  count  it  Christian  perfection 
to  abstain  altogether  from  sexual  intercourse  (Apoc. 
xiv.  4,  cf.  iii.  4  :  I.  iii.  3  is  perhaps  to  be  taken  in  the 
same  sense).  Ecclesiastical  tradition  rightly  cele- 
brates John  of  Ephesus  as  the  apostle  of  virginity. 
How  wide  his  ideal  was  then  spread  we  do  not  know. 
The  number  144000  (xiv.  3)  is,  of  course,  taken  from 
the  apocalyptic  tradition,  and  is  to  be  understood  in 
an  ideal  sense.  But  the  picture  presupposes  the 
existence  at  this  time  of  no  small  proportion  of 
Christian  ascetics. 

If  this  antithesis  in  the  moral  domain  answers  to 
the  conflict  which  forms  the  subject-matter  of  the 
second  and  smaller  letter  of  John,  then  we  shall  find 
the  counter  error  discussed  in  the  third  letter  to  be 
a  feature  of  the  Churches  of  Sardis  and  Ephesus. 
These  have  become  torpid,  they  have  turned  aside 
from  prophecy  and  its  enlivening  spiritual  utterances  ; 
there  is  only  a  dead  ecclesiasticism. 

"  I  counsel  thee,"  says  the  Spirit  through  the  seer, 
"  buy  of  me  gold  tried  in  the  fire,  that  thou  mayest 
be  rich ;  and  white  raiment  that  thou  mayest  be 
clothed,  and  that  the  shame  of  thy  nakedness  do  not 
appear ;  and  anoint  thine  eyes  with  eye-salve  that 
thou  mayest  see  "  (iii.  18).  This  is  an  appeal  to  them 
to  make  use  of  the  charismatic  prophecy.  In  other 
places  also  there  is  talk  of  standing  still  and  retro- 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  229 

gression  (ii.  4) ;  only  in  one  place  of  advance  (ii.  19), 
and  in  one  passage  of  missionary  zeal  (iii.  8).  In 
spite  of  all  the  apocalyptic  tone,  a  certain  worldli- 
ness  is  certainly  to  be  observed.  But  the  pro- 
phetic spirit  reveals  itself  as  moral  power  in  the 
Churches.  Can  we  imagine  that  this  mighty  sum- 
mons to  awake  passed  over  the  Churches  of  Asia 
Minor  leaving  no  trace  behind  ? 

A  certain  lassitude,  such  as  the  seer  has  to  censure 
in  Ephesus  especially,  can  be  recognised  in  the  ex- 
hortations of  the  first  and  larger  epistle,  whose  two 
poles  are  the  repudiation  of  gnostic  speculation  and 
the  inculcation  of  the  brotherly  duty  of  love.  The 
high  strain  of  the  thoughts  which  speak  of  laying 
down  life  for  the  brethren  must  be  moderated  to  the 
practical  direction,  at  least  to  give  some  money  for 
the  hungry  (iii.  16  fF.).  The  love  of  God,  which  had 
become  a  mere  phrase,  must  be  balanced  by  the 
demand  for  practical  continuance  in  brotherly  love 
(iv.  20).  "  My  little  children,  let  us  not  love  in  word, 
neither  with  the  tongue  ;  but  in  deed  and  truth " 
(iii.  18).  This  love  is  no  longer  an  all-inclusive  love, 
that  extends  beyond  the  limits  of  their  own  com- 
munion ;  always  they  speak  only  of  loving  "  one 
another,"  and  of  "  loving  the  brethren."  Tlie  Chris- 
tian withdraws  timidly  from  the  world,  and  restricts 
himself  to  his  own  circle.  We  observe  a  weakening 
of  the  feeling  of  sin,  not  only  in  the  express  require- 
ment of  a  confession  of  sin  (i.  8  fF.),  but  also  in  the 
way  in  which  a  distinction  is  drawn  between  sins  of 
death  and  those  for  which  intercession  can  be  made 
before  God  (v.  16  f.).  That  presupposes,  where  the 
distinction  is  left  to  the  judgment  of  men,  an  out- 


230    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE  {HEATHEN 

ward  standard  such  as  was  adopted  in  the  Church  of 
the  second  and  third  centuries.  Apostasy,  adultery, 
and  murder  are  past  forgiveness. 

On  the  other  hand  we  must  not  fail  to  observe  how 
powerfully  the  Christian  conscience  reacts  against 
the  relaxation  of  moral  energy.  With  all  imaginable 
variations,  and  with  the  most  complex  grounding, 
the  essence  of  Christianity  as  a  religion  of  practical 
morality  is  set  forth.  Truth,  the  nature  of  God 
the  Father  wholly  and  completely  revealed  in 
Jesus  Christ  the  Son,  is  here  made  the  weightiest 
practical  requirement  of  Christians :  communion 
with  God  in  love  to  the  brethren,  turning  away 
from  the  world,  the  lust  of  the  flesh,  the  lust  of  the 
eyes,  and  the  pride  of  life  (ii.  16).  Only  "he  that 
doeth  righteousness  is  righteous  "  (iii.  7).  It  is  the 
ideal  of  the  primitive  Church  without  its  Jewish 
national  characteristics  which  is  here  so  vigorously 
held  up  to  the  Gentile  Christianity  of  Asia  Minor. 

Now,  however,  everything  which  was  essential  to 
the  old  Judaism  is  removed :  circumcision,  Sabbath 
keeping,  commandments  about  food.  In  the  apoca- 
lyptic picture  the  altar  appears  in  the  heavenly 
temple,  but  only  the  prayers  of  the  saints  are  laid  on 
it ;  the  slain  lamb  is  not  sacrifice,  but  rather  priest. 
In  regard  to  ceremonial,  everything  is  altered ; 
worship  is  spiritual :  prayer  and  song,  followed  by 
reading  of  Scripture  and  exhortation.  There  is  a 
special  day  set  apart ;  but  the  Lord's  day,  on  which 
the  Church  assembles  and  the  seer  becomes  ecstatic, 
is  nevertheless  something  different  from  a  delayed 
Sabbath. 

In  addition  to  the  severe  attacks  in    Apoc.  ii.   9, 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  231 

iii.  9,  the  Gospel  according  to  John  shows  how 
foreign  everything  Jewish  is  to  this  circle.  The  syna- 
gogue itself  has  torn  asunder  the  bond  between  it 
and  the  new  Church  (ix.  22,  xii.  42),  while  the  heathen 
crush  in  (xii.  20  fF.).  The  Jews  will  not  and  cannot 
hear  the  voice  of  Jesus  because  they  are  from  be- 
neath, of  the  earth  (iii.  31,  viii.  23);  their  father  is 
the  devil  (viii.  44).  Jesus  does  not  keep  the  Sabbath 
(v.  9  fF.,  17  f ,  vii.  22  f,  ix.  14  fF.).  He  does  not 
attend  the  feasts  regularly  (vi.  4,  vii.  8).  He  has 
dealings  with  Samaritans  without  any  scruples  (iv.  9, 
40).  Already  prayer  to  God  is  not  ofFered  in  a  cere- 
monial which  is  restricted  to  special  places,  but  in 
spirit  and  in  truth  (iv.  23).  In  Christ,  as  the  only- 
begotten  of  the  Father,  His  nature  has  appeared  full 
of  grace  and  truth  (i.  14,  17).  So  they  that  are  His 
are  sanctified,  and  become  more  and  more  sanctified 
in  the  truth  (xvii.  17).  The  Truth  is  the  Word 
which  he  has  spoken  from  the  Father.  It  reveals  His 
holy  nature,  and,  at  the  same  time,  constitutes  the 
moral  demand  made  of  the  disciples.  In  the  last 
instance  it  is  His  commands.  So  there  is  mirrored 
in  the  Gospel,  in  spite  of  the  lofty  speculation  of  the 
prologue,  that  thoroughly  practical  Christianity  which 
is  especially  characteristic  of  the  Johannean  circle 
(xvi.  23). 

What  Christians  have  to  do  is  to  keep  the  word 
(viii.  51  fF).  That  means  to  do  God's  will,  as 
Christ  Himself  does  what  is  well-pleasing  to  the 
Father  (viii.  29,  ix.  31).  "If  any  man  will  do  His 
will,  he  shall  know  of  the  doctrine,  whether  it  be  of 
God,  or  whether  I  speak  of  myself"  (vii.  17,  cf. 
xvii.  6  f ).     The  transformation  of  Christianity  into 


232     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

practical  conduct  is  the  best  apologetic,  and  proves 
its  divine  origin,  just  as  Christ's  own  works  are  the 
most  perfect  witness  of  His  having  been  sent  by  God 
(v.  36,  X.  25,  xiv.  11,  31,  xv.  24,  xvii.  4).  That  His 
disciples  bear  much  fruit  is  the  best  glorifying  of  the 
Father  (xv.  8,  16).  The  early  Christian  belief  in  the 
victorious  power  of  the  good  that  is  rooted  in  God 
here  finds  clear  expression  (x.  29,  xvi.  33).  The  view 
that  some  small  amount  of  sin  does  not  matter  is 
directly  contradicted.  He  who  commits  sin  is  the 
slave  of  sin  (viii.  34).  Evil  works  are  a  cause  of  un- 
belief (iii.  19).  "  If  ye  love  me,  keep  my  command- 
ments" (xiv.  15,  21,  XV.  10). 

The  living  mission-interest  is  portrayed  in  the 
account  of  the  winning  of  the  first  disciples.  One 
tells  the  good  news  to  the  other,  "  We  have  found 
the  Messias"  (i.  41,  45).  We  are  most  favourably 
impressed  by  its  simplicity  and  its  contrast  to  later 
apocryphal  missionary  pictures.  "  Rabbi,  where  dwel- 
lest  thou  ? "  "  Come  and  see  "  (i.  39).  The  Church  is 
conscious  that  whoever  approaches  her  abandons  all 
hesitation,  and  is  won  (i.  46).  In  the  figure  of  John 
the  Baptist  we  are  presented  with  a  pattern  of  un- 
selfish humility  and  truth  (i.  20  ff.,  iii.  27  fF.).  Every 
effort  to  secure  honour  among  men,  such  as  marked 
the  Greek  sophists  and  gnostic  teachers,  is  strictly 
repudiated  (v.  44,  vii.  18,  xii.  43).  The  ideal  is  that 
saving  love  which  the  Lord  exemplified  in  the  wash- 
ing of  the  disciples'  feet  (xiii.  1  fF.,  12  fF.).  The 
disciples  of  Jesus  are  to  be  known  by  their  brotherly 
love  (xiii.  34  f.).  This  love  goes  so  far  as  to  lay 
down  life  for  a  brother  (x.  17,  xv.  12  f.).  Love  to 
the  Lord  does  not  fear   to  go  to   death   with    Him 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  233 

(xi.  16),  and  to  give  up  life  for  Him  (xiii.  37). 
Martyrdoms  have  been  predicted  by  Him  (xvi.  2  f., 
xiii.  36,  xxi.  18),  but  He  has  shown  that  they  mean 
only  following  Him  and  going  to  the  Father.  Every- 
where there  is  a  feeling  of  confidence.  Conscious- 
ness of  uninterrupted  communion  glorifies  the  de- 
parture (xiv.  27  f ,  XV.  11,  xvi.  20  ff.,  xvii.  13),  while 
certainty  of  early  reunion  causes  all  the  oppression  of 
the  world  to  appear  trifling :  "  Be  of  good  cheer,  I 
have  overcome  the  world." 

The  disciples,  it  is  true,  still  live  in  the  world,  but 
they  are  distinctly  separated  from  it ;  they  form  a 
community  of  the  same  inward  unity  which  exists 
between  Father  and  Son  (xvii.  21  ff.).  There  is  not 
lacking  the  painful  experience  of  a  great  apostasy ; 
but  the  true  kernel  draws  together  and  to  the  Lord 
all  the  more  joyfully  and  the  more  consciously  (vi. 
66  f.).  The  different  generations  are  distinct;  the 
immediate  disciples  of  the  I^ord  precede  the  believers 
won  through  their  preaching  (xvii.  6,  9,  20).  The 
most  prominent  of  all  is  John  the  presbyter,  who 
lived  to  a  great  old  age  in  Ephesus,  and  is  now  dead 
(xxi.  22  f ).  Everything  depends  on  the  witness  of 
the  disciples  (xv.  27,  xix.  35,  xxi.  24) ;  but  there  is 
no  word  of  hierarchical  forms.  The  ideal  of  woman- 
hood is  presented  in  the  figures  of  JNIary  the  mother, 
the  Samaritan  woman,  the  sisters  of  Bethany,  and 
]Mary  Magdalene.  Love  of  children  and  care  of  the 
mother  find  their  most  beautiful  expression  in  one  of 
the  words  from  the  Cross  (xix.  26  f.),  though  a  false 
filial  affection  which  interferes  unduly  with  the  pursuit 
of  one's  calling  is  repudiated  (ii.  4).  Of  bad  sins  there 
is  hardly  any  record  in  the  whole  Gospel.     The  peri- 


234    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

cope  of  the  woman  taken  in  adultery,  which  is  designed 
to  scourge  pharisaic  self-righteousness,  and  to  show 
saving  grace  as  superior  to  severe  punishment,  does 
not  belong  to  the  Gospel.  The  immoral  behaviour 
of  the  Samaritan  woman  (iv.  18),  which  we  may 
suppose  allegorical  in  intention,  has  nothing  to  do 
with  the  Christian  Church,  even  if  we  allow  its 
historicity.  The  most  it  can  teach  is  that  Christ 
does  not  endure  such  conduct  in  His  Churches,  and 
that  His  Spirit  will  discover  and  prrtiish  it  {cf.  xvi. 
8  fF.).  That  lying  springs  from  the  devil,  and  that 
he  is  the  instigator  of  murder  (viii.  44),  are  truths 
not  intended  as  special  warnings  against  these  sins. 
Thus,  on  the  whole,  the  Gospel  bears  very  favourable 
testimony  both  to  the  author's  high  moral  comprehen- 
sion of  Christianity  and  to  the  sound  moral  condition 
of  the  Churches  concerned. 


LATER  CHRISTIANITY  AMONG  THE  HEATHEN. 

CHAPTER  XV. 

The  Johannean  Circle — {continued). 

THE    CHURCHES    IN    THE    TIME    OF    IGNATIUS. 

A  PICTURE  of  the  same  Churches  not  more  than 
twenty  years  later  is  given  us  in  the  letters  of  Ignatius.  ^ 
This  Syi'ian  bishop  is  dragged  from  Antioch  through 
Asia  Minor  to  Rome,  to  be  thrown  to  the  wild  beasts 
in  the  circus  there.  On  the  journey  the  Christian 
Churches  pay  their  respects  to  him.  So  far  as  they 
lie  on  his  way,  they  extend  hospitality  to  him.  The 
remoter  ones  send  deputations.  They  accompany 
him  on  parts  of  the  journey  by  turns.  In  return  he 
sends  them  letters  full  of  thanks  and  counsel. 

From  Smyrna  he  writes  to  Ephesus,  Magnesia,  and 
Tralles,  towns  which  he  did  not  touch.  (The  Epistle 
to  Rome  does  not  concern  us  here.)  Letters  go  from 
Troas  to  the  Churches  of  Philadelphia  and  Smyrna, 
with  which  he  had  become  acquainted,  and  to  Poly  carp, 
the  bishop  of  the  latter  town.  Ephesus,  Smyrna,  and 
Philadelphia  we  know  from  the  apocalyptic  letters. 
To  estimate  aright  the  picture  of  the  Churches  which 
Ignatius  gives  in  these  letters,  his  individuality  and 
the  situation  must  be  brought  into  consideration. 
I  Ignatius  is  a  genuine  Syrian.      His  diction,  which, 

236 


236    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

for  Greek,  is  almost  intolerably  affected,  everywhere 
reveals  the  fiery  rhythm  of  Syriac  poetry  with  its 
wonderful  richness  of  colouring  and  imagination. 
The  eccentricities  of  his  nature  were  in  the  highest 
degree  intensified  by  what  had  befallen  him  in 
those  weeks  during  which  he  was  chained  day  and 
night  to  ten  leopards,  as  he  names  his  guard  (Rom. 
V. ).  All  the  way  from  Antioch  to  Rome  there  was 
the  one  end  before  his  eyes.  In  the  burning  desire 
to  perfect  his  discipleship  through  martyrdom,  he 
paints  it  with  awful  realism  (Rom.  iv.,  v.,  Smyr.  iv.  2), 

Near  the  fire,  near  to  God ; 
Among  the  beasts,  with  God. 

He  lives  in  a  higher  world,  in  a  superlative  sphere. 
The  Churches  meet  him  with  honour,  and  worship 
him  in  a  way  which  he  himself  thinks  extravagant. 
We  shall  readily  pardon  little  vanities  in  one  who 
prayed  expressly  for  humility,  as  knowing  clearly 
the  danger  to  which  the  martyr  of  Christ  can  be 
exposed  in  being  deified  by  his  fellows  (Trail,  iv.). 
His  humility  strikes  us  as  overdone,  especially  where 
it  clothes  itself  in  Pauline  phrase,  as  when  he  calls 
himself  the  least  of  the  believers  of  his  own  Church, 
not  worthy  to  be  named  one  of  them  (Eph.  xxi.  2, 
Mag.  xiv..  Trail,  xiii.  1,  Rom.  ix.  2),  when  he  will  not 
allow  himself,  the  captive,  to  be  compared  with  any 
of  the  free  Christians  of  Magnesia  (xii.),  and  when 
he  will  not  admit  that  he  is  a  disciple  of  Christ  at  all 
(Eph.  i.  2,  iii.  1,  Trail,  v.  2,  Rom.  v.  1).  His  feeling 
of  decadence,  as  compared  with  the  Apostles  (Eph. 
xii.  2,  Trail,  iii.  3,  Rom.  iv.  3),  reacts  naturally  against 
the  homage  brought  him,  and  seizes  upon  the  sternest 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  237 

expression  of  personal  un worthiness.  It  is  not  in- 
sincere, nor  is  it  untruthful  flattery,  when  he  covers 
the  Churches  with  loads  of  praise.  In  his  very  in- 
telligible excitement,  a  man  of  his  fiery  nature  could 
not  speak  without  exaggeration. 

He  piles  up  the  words.  He  does  not  say,  "  children 
of  light,"  or  "  children  of  truth,"  but  "  children  of  the 
light  of  truth"  (Phil.  ii.  1);  he  is  not  content  with 
"  well-ordered,"  but  must  write  "  very  well-ordered  " 
(Mag.  i.).  We  have  only  to  read  the  untranslatable 
series  of  honorary  titles  which,  e.g.^  he  gives  to  the 
Roman  Church  : — a^i6Qeo<i^  a^ioTrpeTnjg,  a^ioixaKapia-TO<i, 
a.^i€7raii/o<^,  a^ioeTriTevKTO^,  a^ioaypo?  Km  TrpoKaOtj/JLevrj  t>]? 
aydTrt]<;,  ^^piarTovo/uo?,  7raTpwvv/uiO(;,  "  worthy  of  God,  really 

worthy,  worthy  of  blessing,  worthy  of  praise,  worthy 
of  intercession,  really  chaste,  presiding  in  love,  walking 
in  the  law  of  Christ,  adorned  with  the  name  of  the 
Father."  Ignatius  is  so  far  from  desiring  to  flatter, 
that  he  expressly  says,  "  I  know  that  you  will  not  be 
puffed  up,  because  ye  have  Jesus  Christ  in  you :  and 
especially  when  I  commend  you,  I  know  that  you 
feel  shame,  as  it  is  written,  the  righteous  man  is  his 
own  accuser  "  (Magn.  xii.,  cf.  Proverbs  xviii.  17).  We 
shall,  however,  receive  his  expressions  with  caution, 
even  where  he  repeats  the  judgment  of  others,  e.g., 
that  of  the  bishop  of  Ephesus  on  his  own  Church : 
"  Onesimus  praises  extraordinarily  your  excellent 
order  in  God,  that  you  all  live  according  to  the  truth, 
and  no  heresy  lives  among  you,  and  that  ye  listen  to 
no  one  else  but  Jesus  Christ,  Who  speaks  in  truth  " 
(Eph.  vi.  2),  a  statement  which  is  contradicted  by  his 
own  exhortations.  Nevertheless,  in  spite  of  all  his 
artificiality,   he  is    not   insincere ;   he   knows   as   yet 


238    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

nothing  of  that  half-pathological  insensibility  of  which 
later  martyrs  boast,  and  which  their  panegyrists  admire 
most.  He  has  a  natural  horror  of  death,  and  thinks 
it  possible  that  a  moment  may  come  when  he  will 
appeal  to  the  Romans  to  beg  for  his  release. 

One  thing  distinctly  great  in  the  man  is  the  stern 
alternative  which  he  offers  :  Christian  or  non- Christian, 
God  or  world,  Life  or  death  (Eph.  xi.  1,  Mag.  v.). 
How  he  elaborates  that,  how  in  conflict  with  Docetism 
he  asserts  a  very  solid  kind  of  Christological  confession, 
how  he  materialises  in  various  ways  the  blessings  of 
Christianity,  how  in  opposition  to  heresy  he  sees  the 
whole  of  salvation  in  one  hierarchy  and  in  the  strictest 
subordination  of  the  Churches,  are  points  which  do 
not  fall  to  be  discussed  here.  But  it  is  important  to 
observe  that  he  emphasises  the  truth  that  "  They  that 
are  carnal  cannot  do  spiritual  things,  nor  they  that 
are  spiritual,  carnal  things  ;  as  also  faith  cannot  do 
the  works  of  unbelief,  nor  unbelief  do  the  works  of 
faith "  (Eph.  viii.  2).  "  No  one  who  confesseth  the 
faith  sinneth,  nor  does  any  one  who  has  love,  hate  " 
(Eph.  xiv.  2).  It  is  interesting  to  see  how  in  this 
quite  Catholic-minded  bishop,  who  thinks  only  of  the 
great  of  the  Old  Testament  past  as  prophets,  there 
yet  speaks  to  the  Churches  of  Asia  Minor  a  "  minister 
of  the  spirit "  {6eo(p6pof)  living  wholly  in  ecstasy  and 
revelations  (Eph.  xxi..  Trail,  v.,  Philad.  vii.,  Polyc.  ii.). 
His  words,  too,  bore  fruit.  Even  while  he  was  on  the 
journey,  these  letters  were  collected  and  exchanged 
from  Church  to  Church.  The  letter  which  the  very 
differently-constituted  Polycarp  of  Smyrna  sends 
along  with  the  collection  to  Philippi  bears  witness 
to  the   impression    which  Ignatius  made.     It  is  the 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  239 

echo  of  the  letter  which  Ignatius  sent  to  Polycarp 
himself. 

This  letter  to  Polycarp,  which  differs  distinctly 
from  the  others,  is  a  Mirror  for  Bishops,  a  pastoral 
letter  in  the  noblest  sense  of  the  word.  We  learn 
from  it  better  than  froin  the  letter  to  Timothy  and 
Titus,  the  high  demands  which  were  made  of  the 
Christian  bishop.  Ignatius  had  become  acquainted 
with  Polycarp  a  short  time  before,  and  had  observed 
him  in  his  Church ;  all  the  more  important  are  the 
details  which  he  gives. 

The  bishop,  with  eye  fixed  on  the  Lord  Who 
sustains  him,  praying  ever  for  richer  knowledge  and 
clearer  revelations,  is  to  exhort  all  that  they  may  be 
saved,  to  support  all  and  to  receive  all.  Man  for 
man  he  is  to  talk  with  them  to  godly  unanimity  of 
mind.  "  If  ye  love  only  the  good  disciples,  what 
profit  have  ye  ?  rather  seek  by  gentleness  to  subdue 
the  more  corrupt "  (ii.  1).  He  is  a  physician  who  must 
heal  every  wound  according  to  its  nature,  and  cool 
every  fever  through  cold  fomentations.  He  is  not  to 
be  afraid  of  false  teachers ;  like  a  good  soldier  he  is 
to  withstand  them.  He  is  to  provide  for  all  sorts 
and  conditions  of  people.  Above  all,  the  widows 
are  placed  in  his  charge.  The  slaves  also  are  to  be 
received  by  him,  but  he  is  to  guard  them  from  pride 
and  desire  for  emancipation.  In  preaching  he  is  to 
warn  against  shameful  callings,  and  because  he  has 
also  to  care  for  the  married,  marriages  are  to  be 
performed  before  him.  The  main  concern  is  the 
unity  of  the  Church,  which  Ignatius  impresses  on  the 
bishop,  and  also  on  the  Church  itself. 

Polycarp,  to  whose  performance  of  the  foregoing 


240    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

Ignatius  testifies,  really  bears  it  out.  That  is  shown 
by  his  epistle  to  the  Church  of  Philippi,  from  which 
we  know  him  as  a  faithful  exhorter  of  Christians. 
He  is  skilful  in  discovering  defects  in  all  ranks.  He 
holds  up  the  pattern  of  Jesus  Christ  and  His  com- 
mandments, dwelling  specially  on  the  duty  of  for- 
giveness and  the  giving  up  of  revenge.  Influenced 
by  Paul  and  John  equalty.  Poly  carp  holds  fast  the 
ideal  of  Christian  faith,  which  hope  follows  and  love 
precedes.  Thus  is  fulfilled  the  commandment  of 
righteousness,  "  Who  has  love  is  far  from  every  sin  " 
(iii.  3).  He  exposes  wrong  doctrine  in  its  diabolical 
deceit  and  fortifies  the  Church  in  fidelity  of  confession, 
in  unity  of  love,  in  the  duties  towards  the  world  out- 
side, and  in  prayer  for  magistrates  and  persecutors. 
Such   are   the   character  sketches  of  two  leading 

o 

Christian  personalities,  who,  in  a  ruling  position, 
exercised  influence  on  the  moral  spirit  of  these 
Churches. 

What  was  the  state  of  matters  in  the  Churches 
themselves  ?  In  the  first  place  we  admire  the  living 
consciousness  of  the  unity  of  all  Christian  com- 
munities, the  warm  interest  in  the  success  of  all 
which  is  revealed  in  actual  deed.  Deputations  were 
sent  to  greet  the  martyr-bishop,  letters  and  news  are 
interchanged.  Through  the  Cilician  deacon  Philo, 
and  the  Syrian  Rheus  Agathopus,  who  followed  him 
and  reached  him  in  Troas,  Ignatius  received  the  glad 
news  that  in  his  Church  of  Antioch  peace  is  restored 
after  the  severe  persecution.  He  wrote  at  once  to 
Philadelphia  and  Smyrna,  and  because  he  had  to 
proceed  on  his  journey,  and  could  not  write  to  all  the 
others,  he  asked  Polycarp  to  hand  his  letter  on.     The 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  241 

intercessions  for  Antioch  are  now  granted  (Eph.  xxi. 
2,  Magn.  xiv..  Trail,  xiii.,  Rom.  ix.,  Smyr.  xi.).  The 
Churches  are  to  express  their  joy  by  sending  deputa- 
tions and  are  to  strengthen  the  brethren  there.  It  is 
a  large  demand ;  but  Ignatius  had  himself  learned 
how  willing  the  Churches  of  Asia  INIinor  were  to  send 
deputations  to  him  (Eph.  i.  1,  Rom.  ix.  3). 

He  rejoices  at  their  escort  (Phil,  xi.,  Smyr.  xii.); 
hurrying  on  before  by  the  direct  road,  the  Ephesians 
go  to  Rome  on  his  behalf  (Rom.  x.).  He  knows  that 
the  nearer  Churches  have  already  sent  deputations,  and 
is  convinced  that  the  people  of  Asia  Minor  can  do  so 
also — for  the  name  of  God  (Phil,  x.)  Who  is  ready  to 
assist  those  who  desire  to  do  well  (Smyr.  xi.  3)  ;  the 
Christian  does  not  belong  to  himself;  he  must  have 
time  for  God  (Polyc.  vii.  3).  As  a  matter  of  fact  we 
see  that  the  Philippians,  the  most  remote,  have  asked 
the  Smyrnseans  to  represent  them  also,  and  Polycarp, 
either  himself  or  through  a  deputation,  will  on  a 
favourable  opportunity  make  the  due  arrangements 
(Polyc.  ad  Phil.  xiii.).  It  is  well  known  where  the 
other  prisoners  are  (Rom.  x.  2),  and  there  is  always 
news  (Poly,  ad  Phil.  xiii.).  If  this  amounted  almost 
to  a  worship  of  martyrs  it  was  due  to  pure  admiration 
of  their  heroic  confession  of  the  Gospel ;  of  the  worship 
of  relics  there  is  as  little  mention  as  of  intercession 
with  God. 

Ignatius  can  even  express  the  wish  that  the  wild 
beasts  will  be  his  grave,  devouring  him  entirely,  so 
that  his  burial  may  not  be  a  burden  to  any  one 
(Rom.  iv.  2),  while  at  the  same  time  he  hopes  to  rise 
one  day  in  his  chains  (Eph.  xi.  2).  Other  Christians 
also  find  everywhere  a  friendly  welcome,  like  the  two 

16 


242    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

Syrians  who  followed  Ignatius  in  Smyrna  (x.)  and 
Philadelphia  (xi.  1).  If  some  treated  them  evilly 
there  (aTiM«<^a»^Te?),  that  was  due  to  personal  and 
material  differences,  to  which  we  shall  return ;  the 
passionate  Syrian  bishop  with  his  ceterum  censeo 
"  Obey  the  bishop,"  did  not  please  every  one.  Greet- 
ings are  sent  to  intimate  acquaintances,  and  when 
brethren  go  to  strange  places  they  are  to  be  com- 
mended to  the  Churches  there  (Polyc.  ad  Phil.  xiv.). 

Within  the  Churches  a  great  alteration  has  taken 

place.     Everywhere — Rome  is  not  concerned  here — 

there  is  a  firmly-organised  administration  :  a  bishop, 

the  presbytery,  deacons.     Of  charismatics  there  is  now 

no   mention.     When    Ignatius    speaks    of    prophets, 

he    means    the    prophets    of    the    Old    Testament. 

Nevertheless    Ignatius    the    bishop    is     himself    an 

ecstatic,    who    receives   lofty   revelations    which    he 

cannot  impart  to  every  one  (Trail,  v.),  who  waits  for 

such  in   order  to  write  more  (Eph.  xx.),  who  with 

wonderful  wisdom  looks  into  hearts  and  makes  known 

hidden  discords.     Polycarp,  too,  is  to  pray  for  such 

revelations  (Polyc.  ii.  2).     A  warning  is  given  against 

those  who,  without  a  call,  press  in  as  teachers  (Eph. 

XV.).     This  shows  that  the  conflict  which  we  saw  in 

the   third    Epistle   of  John   is    settled :    the  Church 

clearly  feels  itself  to  be  the  only  bearer  of  charismatic 

gifts.      Diotrephes  has  prevailed  over  the  presbyter 

John.     But  the  effects  of  the  conflict  continue.     The 

position  of  the  bishop  seems  not  everywhere  firmly 

fixed.     Ignatius  never  tires  of  repeating  that  union 

with  him  is  the  most  important  Christian  duty.     He 

represents   the    unity   of  the    Church    (Trail,    iii.    1, 

Phil.  iii.  2,  Smyr.  viii.  1).     Without  him  nothing  can 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  2*3 

happen  in  the  Church :  no  baptism,  no  agape,  no 
eucharist. 

He  who  honours  the  bishop  is  honoured  of  God. 
He  who  does  anything  secretly  behind  the  bishop's 
back,  serves  the  devil  (Smyr.  ix.  1,  cf.  INIagn.  iv.). 
It  is  good  when  the  bishop's  adornment  is  great 
wisdom  and  his  strength  humility  (Trail,  iii.  2),  yet 
want  of  oratorical  gifts  and  youth  (Magn.  iii.  1)  do 
not  lessen  his  importance.  His  prayer,  as  the  com- 
bined utterance  of  the  whole  Church,  has  particular 
weight  (Eph.  v.  2).  Special  demands,  however,  are 
made  of  the  bishop  in  the  moral  aspect ;  he  is  to  be 
a  pattern  to  his  Church.  Ignatius  can  boast  of  the 
extent  to  which  he  has  experienced  the  inexpressible 
love,  the  zeal  of  the  entire  Church  in  Onesimus  of 
Ephesus,  Damas  of  JNIagnesia,  and  Polybius  of 
Tralles.  Wq  have  already  spoken  of  the  pastoral 
theology  of  the  Epistle  to  Polycarp.  Polycarp  him- 
self, in  the  Epistle  to  the  Philippians,  records  the 
requirements  made  of  the  other  clerics.  Ignatius 
brings  all  these  under  the  one  great  commandment 
of  obedience  to  the  bishop.  The  presbyters  are  to 
be  full  of  love  and  mercy  toward  every  one,  to  bring 
back  the  wandering,  to  receive  the  weak,  not  to 
neglect  widows,  orphans,  and  poor.  They  are  to  be 
without  anger,  partiality,  unjust  judgment,  far  from 
all  greed  of  money,  not  giving  ready  ear  to  any 
against  another,  not  severe  in  judgment  (vi.  1);  the 
teachers  are  to  be  the  servants  of  God  and  Christ, 
not  of  men,  not  slanderers  nor  two-tongued,  free  from 
greed  of  money,  temperate  in  all  things,  full  of  pity, 
caring  for  all,  following  the  example  of  Christ  (v.  2). 

Besides  these,  as  we  see  here,  there  were  still  other 


244    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

classes  in  the  Church,  who,  with  the  exception  of 
those  virgin  ascetics  described  as  widows  (Smyr.  xiii.) 
did  not  belong  to  the  clergy.  As  the  men  are  to 
arm  themselves  with  the  weapons  of  righteousness, 
and  to  teach  themselves  to  walk  in  the  Lord's  com- 
mands, so  their  wives  are  to  teach  themselves  in 
faith,  love,  chastity,  to  love  their  husbands,  and  to 
bring  up  their  children  in  the  fear  of  God  (Polyc.  ad 
Phil.  iv.  1  f.).  The  widows  are  soberly  and  thought- 
fully to  apply  themselves  to  intercessory  prayer, 
and  remain  free  from  slandering,  evil-speaking,  false 
witness,  covetousness,  and  other  evils  (3).  The 
young  men  are  to  guard  their  purity  in  obedience  to 
presbyters  and  deacons  ;  and  the  virgins  to  walk 
with  unstained  and  chaste  conscience  (v.  3).  These 
are  all  requirements  so  natural  to  the  Christian 
conscience  that  we  may  not  assume  their  prominence 
as  a  proof  of  failure  to  fulfil  them.  They  were 
always  repeated,  and  thereby  with  time  a  corre- 
sponding demeanour  was  bound  to  result. 

If  there  ever  was  an  offence  against  these  demands, 
as  happened  in  Philippi  in  the  case  of  the  avaricious 
presbyter  Valens  and  his  wife,  it  was  keenly  felt. 
Even  Polycarp,  the  bishop  of  a  different  Church, 
expressed  the  deep  pain  which  the  occurrence  caused 
him,  and  did  not  lose  the  opportunity  of  exhorting 
the  whole  Church  once  more  to  chastity  and  truth, 
and  of  steeling  it  against  covetousness  which  leads 
to  idolatry  {cf.  Col.  iii.  5),  yet  with  the  express 
addition  that  he  does  not  expect  such  from  the 
Church  which  the  Apostle  Paul  commended.  The 
Church  is  to  call  those  people  to  repentance,  and  so 
to  edify  itself  (ad  Phil.  xi.). 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  245 

If  the  one  conflict  of  the  Johannean  period  is  set  I 
aside  through  firmer  organisation,  the  conflict  with  \ 
false  doctrine,  especially  docetism,  continues  unabated. 
A^^e  are  not  concerned  here  with  the  relation  of  its 
representatives  to  earlier  heretics,  whether  the  idea 
is  still  the  same  or  a  development.  Nor  is  Ignatius 
the  man  to  take  pains  to  make  that  clear.  He  is 
concerned  only  with  the  great  facts  of  Christ's  death 
and  resurrection,  wliich  are  the  guarantee  of  real 
salvation  and  which  he  sets  forth  as  solidly  as  possible. 
He  plays  with  formulas  only  to  lead  his  opponents 
to  an  absurdity ;  those  who  will  admit  only  the 
appearance  of  suffering  are  themselves  only  appear- 
ances (Trail.  X.,  Smyr.  ii.).  As  they  do  not  believe 
in  the  redeeming  death,  so  are  they  themselves  un- 
worthy of  belief,  unworthy  that  they  should  be 
named  (Smyr.  v.).  His  special  criticism  lies  in  the  ' 
moral  domain.  He  declares  that  false  teachers  lack 
love.  That  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  they  give 
occasion  to  all  these  debates  and  destroy  the  unity 
of  the  Church  (Smyr.  vii.  1).  But  they  have  no 
idea  at  all  of  the  tasks  of  practical  Christianity. 
They  are  not  troubled  about  the  exercise  of  love 
(Smyr.  vi.  2) ;  they  keep  themselves  far  from  the 
eucharist  and  the  Church's  meetings  (Smyr.  vii.  1). 
Their  abominable  pride  is  to  blame ;  they  imagine 
themselves  to  be  superior  (Eph.  v.  3).  Ignatius 
seems  unable  to  say  anything  more  about  them 
when  he  calls  their  doctrine  evil  (Eph.  ix.  1),  and 
speaks  of  their  doing  what  is  unworthy  of  God  (Eph. 
vii.  1 ).  Though  the  Churches  are  to  flee  from  them 
as  from  wild  beasts,  they  may  still  be  prayed  for ; 
it  will  nevertheless  be  difficult  to  save  them  (Eph. 


246    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

vii.  1).  The  rupture  was  evidently  complete,  although 
gnosticism  by  no  means  withheld  from  propagandism 
in  the  Churches.  In  Ephesus  there  was  no  schism 
in  the  Church  (Heresy  vi.  2).  Ignatius  expressly 
says  that  his  warnings  are  intended  only  to  guard 
against  schism  (Eph.  viii.  1,  Mag.  xi.,  Trail,  viii.  1). 

Nevertheless  he  must  have  considered  these  ex- 
hortations very  necessary.  As  a  matter  of  fact  there 
were  false  teachers  in  Ephesus  itself  (Eph.  ix.),  and 
in  Magnesia  there  were  people  who,  while  they 
recognised  the  bishop  as  such,  held  their  own 
assemblies  without  him  (Magn.  iv.).  The  Churches 
must  draw  together  all  the  more,  and  the  episcopal 
organisation,  which  also  afforded  a  middle  point  of 
worship,  is  found  to  be  very  effective  to  this  end 
(Magn.  vii.,  Phil.  iv.).  Ignatius  asks  for  more  active 
participation  in  the  devotional  life,  more  frequent 
meetings  (Eph.  xiii.  1) ;  the  bishop  is  to  summon  all 
members  by  name  (Polyc.  iv.  2). 

Docetism  was  not  the  only  danger.  A  second 
threatened  in  Judaism,  as  Ignatius  names  it,  without, 
however,  giving  us  any  sufficient  explanation  of  what 
he  understands  by  the  term.  It  might  almost  be 
supposed  to  be  only  a  reminiscence  of  Pauline  con- 
troversy. But  the  warnings  which  are  found  only 
in  the  epistles  to  Magnesia  (x.)  and  Philadelphia 
(vi.)  are  too  definite.  With  the  old  agitation  that 
proceeded  from  Palestine  this  had  indeed  nothing  to 
do ;  its  representatives  are  Gentile  Christians,  uncir- 
cumcised  (Phil.  vi.).  It  is  simply  bibHcal  legalism, 
which,  as  reaction  against  the  moral  indifference  of 
speculative  theology,  goes  to  the  other  extreme, 
burdening  Christianity  again  with  Old  Testament  law 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  247 

and  setting  up  again  the  once  historically -justified 
ideal  of  Jewish  Christianity,  the  loyal  fulfilment  of 
the  law  under  the  entirely  altered  circumstances  of 
Gentile  Christianity. 

On  the  other  hand  it  is  a  wonderful  fact  that  this 
Christianity,  under  the  guidance  of  men  like  Ignatius 
and  Polycarp,  held  fast  to  its  own  ideal.  Naturally 
it  is  no  longer  necessary,  as  it  was  in  the  days  of 
Paul,  to  form  a  new  ideal  through  the  operation  of 
the  Christian  spirit,  which  finds  unaided  what  is  right 
in  the  moral  domain.  The  type  of  the  Christian 
moral  life  was  already  long  formed.  There  was  a 
regular  expression  for  it,  Kara  ^pia-Tiavicrfxou  ^^v,  to  live 
according  to  Christianity,  to  Avalk  according  to  the 
principles  of  Christianity  (JNIagn.  x.  1).  It  is  char- 
acteristic that  besides  the  earlier  motives  of  the 
imitation  of  God  (Eph.  i.  1,  Trail,  i.  2),  the  pattern  of 
Christ  (Polyc.  ad  Phil.  x.  I),  and  the  thought  of  the 
end  of  all  things  (Eph.  xi.  1),  the  most  effective 
inducements  are  the  recollection  of  the  great  past 
and  their  relation  to  the  apostles  (Eph.  xi.  2,  xii., 
Polyc.  ad  Phil.  i.  2,  iii.  2,  xi.  2  f.).  The  new 
period,  it  is  true,  did  add  new  features  to  the  ideal. 
What,  in  the  case  of  Paul,  was  only  slightly  in- 
dicated as  Christian  public  spirit  and  acknowledgment 
of  voluntary  services  on  behalf  of  the  Church,  now 
appears  as  the  external  cohesion  of  all  congregations 
in  confession  and  ceremonial,  and  as  the  obedience 
of  all  members  to  the  bishop  and  his  clergy.  But 
however  much  importance  the  special  characteristics 
of  Ignatius  attach  to  this,  the  early  Christian  elements 
have  not  been  disowned.  It  still  remains  the  most 
important  duty  of  Christians  that,  looking  to  Christ's 


248    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

sufferings,  they  should  meet  anger  with  gentleness, 
boasting  with  humility,  calumnies  with  prayers, 
seductions  with  fixed  faith,  cruelty  with  mildness, 
showing  themselves  the  brethren  of  their  opponents 
with  meekness.  These  are  the  works  by  which  the 
heathen  can  be  won  as  disciples  of  the  Gospel 
(Eph.  x).  The  Lord's  words  which  forbid  judgment 
and  revenge,  are  always  kept  in  mind  (Polyc.  ad 
Phil.  2).  The  Christian  owes  it  to  his  Christianity 
that  his  work  shall  be  seen  (Eph.  xiv.  2).  A  few 
foolish  men  can  discredit  the  whole  Church  of  God ; 
therefore  all  offence  in  outward  things  is  to  be  avoided, 
and  all  inner  enmity,  which  only  too  easily  gives 
occasion  to  offence  (Trail,  viii.  2). 

The  greater  extension  of  the  Churches  gives  rise  to 
a  much  greater  danger,  that,  viz.,  of  a  merely  nominal 
Christianity.  Ignatius  exhorts  Christians  to  be  so 
not  only  in  name  but  in  deed  (Magn.  iv.),  as  he 
himself  prays  for  the  strength,  not  only  to  be  called 
a  Christian  but  also  to  be  found  a  Christian  (Rom. 
iii.  2).  Christianity  is  not  something  that  men  can 
be  persuaded  to  by  art ;  it  reveals  its  greatness  and 
power,  when  it  is  met  by  the  world  with  hatred 
(Rom.  iii.  3).  In  Christianity  Ignatius  certainly 
places  the  greatest  stress  on  the  religious  confession 
which  remains  constant  in  martyrdom,  and  on  the 
common  worship.  But  he  means  also  the  practical 
demonstration  of  morality.  It  is  indeed  remarkable 
that  he  never  mentions  the  grievous  sins  of  heathen- 
dom, unchastity,  covetousness,  and  so  on.  He  indi- 
cates in  a  single  word  that  married  people  are  to 
belong  exclusively  to  one  another,  for  in  the  Christian 
brother-  and  sister-hood  it  was  just  here  that  a  certain 


THE   JOHANNEAN   CIRCLE  249 

danger  lay  (Polyc.  v.  1).  For  the  rest,  Ignatius  is  dis- 
posed to  view  with  much  more  suspicion  the  spiritual 
pride  of  asceticism  (Polyc.  v.  2)  and  the  desire  for 
emancipation  on  the  part  of  the  slaves,  who  probably 
even  claimed  that  they  should  be  redeemed  with 
ChiH'ch  funds.  Ignatius  repeats  what  Paul  said  in 
regard  to  this.  Instead  of  becoming  to  some  extent 
puffed  up  as  Christians,  they  should  rather  serve 
with  greater  faithfulness  for  the  honour  of  God 
(Polyc.  iv.  3).  There  is  still  a  warning  against 
dishonourable  professions  which  are  incompatible 
with  Christianity  (Polyc.  v.   1). 

What  Ignatius  is  thinking  of  specially  is  not  quite 
clear.  According  to  later  statements,  we  shall  have 
to  understand  all  that  is  in  any  way  connected  witli 
idolatry,  the  theatre,  the  circus,  and  perhaps,  also, 
war.  The  Christian  himself  engages  in  a  warfare 
with  his  heavenly  Lord  :  let  none  be  found  deserting 
His  standard  (Polyc.  vi.  2). 

It  may  be  said  that  the  fact  of  those  questions  of 
morals  not  being  spoken  of  is  due  to  the  method  of 
Ignatius,  who  emphasises  only  the  one  central  point 
of  Christianity,  confession  and  Church  unity.  But 
even  Polycarp,  who  is  so  different  and  so  entirely 
practical,  goes  carefully  through  the  duties  of 
Christians  in  all  conditions,  and  hardly  mentions  them 
at  all.  On  one  occasion  he  names,  as  what  Christians 
have  to  avoid,  injustice,  over-reaching,  covetousness, 
calumny,  false  witness  (ad  Phil.  ii.  2),  especially  in 
the  case  of  widows  (iv.  3).  The  moral  failings  against 
which  Paul  warns  the  Corinthians  (1  Cor.  vi.  9  f )  he 
treats  only  as  the  temptations  of  youth.  The  ideal  is 
the  chastity  of  the  young  man  and  maid,  and  we  do 


250    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

not  get  the  impression  that  any  great  difficulty  was 
looked  for  in  the  realisation  of  this.  A  Christian 
custom  has  been  developed,  and  lies  like  a  wall  of 
protection  round  the  individual  members  of  the 
community,  separating  them  absolutely  from  every- 
thing pagan.  The  dangers  now  lie  in  another 
province.  There  is  a  Christian  clergy,  which  easily 
abuses  its  office,  not  in  the  way  of  false  doctrine  only, 
but  also  for  cruel  party-judgment  and  self- aggrandise- 
ment. The  case  of  V'alens  is  a  sad  instance  of  this. 
But  this,  too,  is  such  an  isolated  instance  that  it  can- 
not be  accepted  as  typical. 

Love  and  obedience — these  are  the  two  poles 
round  which  the  Christian  life  of  this  circle  moves. 
The  former,  standing  at  the  beginning  and  right  in 
the  forefront,  brings  us  back  immediately  upon  the 
central  thoughts  of  the  Gospel.  Here  it  was  Jesus 
who  taught  John  as  well  as  Paul.  The  obedience 
which  Ignatius  pushes  into  the  foreground  shows, 
on  the  contrary,  the  spirit  of  later  development,  and 
points  to  the  organisation  of  the  Catholic  Church.  It 
is  remarkable  that  we  find  both  united  in  that  letter 
from  Rome  to  Corinth,  which  is  evidently  quite 
unaffected  by  this  Johannean  circle.  We  must 
again  admit  that  the  same  spirit,  though  operative 
in  very  different  fashion,  shapes  conceptions  and 
conditions  that  are  entirely  similar. 


LATER  CHRISTIANITY  AMONG  THE  HEATHEN. 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

The  Beginnings  of  Gnosticism. 

We  have  already  had  occasion  to  note  two  influences 
which  worked  with  disintegrating  effect.  One  was  ^ 
the  divergence  between  the  intellectual  and  the  moral 
side  of  Christianity,  the  other  was  the  effect  which  the 
ascetic  tendencies  of  the  age  had  on  its  moral  ideas. '  - 
These  two  influences  are  the  constituent  factors  of 
that  form  of  Christian  morality  which  we  find  in 
gnosticism.  A  very  significant  name  for  a  thing 
hard  to  comprehend  !  We  may  say  for  certain,  that 
it  is  no  specially  Christian  phenomenon.  The  currents 
which  the  whole  thought  of  the  time  followed  attained 
great  influence  in  the  youthful  Christianity.  Specu-  \ 
lative  necessity,  the  desire  for  redemption  and  expia- 
tion, formed  wonderful  systems  and  rites  from  Oriental 
mythology,  astrology,  Greek  philosophy  and  mysteri- 
osophy.  To  these  the  Gospel  of  Christ  made  a  more 
or  less  large  contribution.  From  the  point  of  view 
of  religious  history,  it  is  of  the  utmost  interest  to  see 
how  Christianity  influenced  this  whole  world  of 
thought  in  the  way  of  clearing  it  up,  and  how  this 
influence  made  itself  more  and  more  felt. 

Still  more  important  is  it  to  observe  how  Chris- 
tianity itself,  the  Gospel,  suffered  peculiar  modification 

2r)i 


252    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

through  its  introduction  into  this  world  of  thought, 
how  there  was  first  formed  a  doctrine  of  faitli  and 
morahty,  a  theology,  and  how  this  doctrine  on  the 
basis  of  Greek  speculation  spiritualised  the  Gospel 
and  volatilised  its  historical  content.  Here,  however, 
our  task  can  only  be  to  test  the  influences  which  this 
M^hole  tendency  exercised  on  the  moral  life.  We 
restrict  ourselves  purposely  to  the  beginnings  of 
gnosticism.  The  great  systems  of  a  Basilides  or  a 
Valentinus  lie  outside  the  limit  which  we  have 
adopted.  As  a  matter  of  fact  they  also  offer  some- 
thing new  and  different.  They  are,  in  the  first  place, 
results  of  theological  reflection,  and,  further,  they 
show  a  distinct  advance  in  the  Christian  factor.  An 
express  appeal  was  made  by  them  to  passages  of 
Scripture  and  words  of  the  Lord,  and  the  interpreta- 
tion put  upon  these  shows  that  the  positive  thoughts 
of  the  Gospel  balanced  the  negative  thought  of  the 
common  gnostic  ethic.  The  narratives  of  the  so- 
called  apocryphal  Acts  of  the  Apostles  are  nearer  to 
the  original  gnosticism  than  those  systems.  In  story 
form  these  narratives  set  forth  the  fates  of  the  apostles 
Thomas,  Andrew,  and  John,  in  order  to  bring  the 
views  of  gnostic  circles  into  the  Church.  However 
late  they  may  be,  we  can  well  use  them  as  illustra- 
tion. What  they  relate  gives  a  picture  of  conditions 
and  views  much  older  than  the  works  themselves. 
We  renounce  those  systems  all  the  more  readily  because 
we  are  less  concerned  with  systematic  foundations  than 
with  the  actual  outcome  of  ethical  tendencies. 

The  beginnings  of  gnosticism  are  lost  in  thick 
darkness.  Concrete  figures  are  almost  entirely 
wanting.        Names     like     Hymeneeus,      Alexander, 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM        253 

Philetus,  Phygelus,  and  Hermogenes  tell  us  nothing 
(1  Tim.  i.  20,  2  Tim.  i.  15,  ii.  17,  iv.  14).  Even  in 
the  case  of  those  who  are  usually  first  treated  in  the 
history  of  heresy,  Cerinthus,  e.g.,  we  can  obtain  no 
clear  picture  from  the  contradictory  sources.  In  the 
heat  of  the  controversy  some  of  the  leaders  had 
typical  names  from  the  Old  Testament  applied  to 
them — Balaam,  Jezebel,  Jannes  and  Jambres  (Apoc. 
ii.  14,  20,  2  Tim.  iii.  8,  Jude  11),  and  one  might 
almost  claim  to  learn  more  from  these.  Nevertheless 
we  can  see  that  the  beginnings  of  the  movement 
reach  back  into  the  first  ages  of  Christianity.  The 
tendencies  combated  by  Paul  in  Phrygia  are  already 
gnostic.  The  Johannean  writings  wage  a  conflict 
with  gnostics  in  Asia  JNIinor  (perhaps  Cerinthus). 
The  pastoral  epistles  and  the  Epistle  of  Jude  (2  Peter) 
also  contend  with  gnostics  of  various  kinds.  We 
must  everywhere  remember  that  gnosticism  is  no 
closed  system.  The  word  describes  a  variegated 
manifold  of  views,  and  the  boundary  line  between 
it  and  Church  Christianity  is  always  a  fluctuating 
one.  The  separation  from  communion  with  the 
Church,  which  II.  John  strives  for,  seems  in  I.  John 
to  be  already  complete.  2  Tim.  ii.  20  even  offers 
a  theory  for  the  existence  side  by  side  of  true  and 
false  Christians,  while  Jude  23  demands  the  strictest 
separation  and  hardly  seems  to  believe  in  the  possibility 
of  conversion.  Ignatius  also  warns  against  these 
false  Christians.  They  are  like  raving  dogs,  which 
bite  secretly  and  leave  wounds  that  cannot  easily  be 
healed  (ad  Eph.  vii.  1).  Thus  it  is  not  always  easy  to 
define  exactly  where  the  Catholic  Christianity  ceases 
and  gnosticism  begins. 


254    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

Gnosticism  is,  in  the  first  place,  intellectualism, 
one-sided  over- valuation  of  knowledge  at  the  expense 
of  moral  activity.  In  this  sense  we  have  found 
gnosticism  already  among  the  "  Strong  "  in  Corinth. 
If  faith  was  for  Paul  the  source  of  the  highest  moral 
power,  the  two  closely-connected  factors,  objective 
belief  and  moral  conduct,  diverge  more  and  more  as 
time  goes  on.  Sometimes  the  emphasis  is  laid  only 
on  the  one,  sometimes  on  the  other.  Knowledge 
is  the  catchword  on  the  one  side  and  practical 
Christianity  on  the  other.  The  hostile  tendencies 
move  always  further  and  further  apart  until  there  is 
a  distinct  external  break.  We  have  come  across 
such  oppositions  repeatedly.  Sometimes  they  were 
differences  within  the  Church,  sometimes  disputes 
with  different  communions  which  called  themselves 
Christian.     The  boundary  line  always  fluctuates. 

The  warning  against  many  teachers  (Jas.  iii.  1)  was 
directed  against  tendencies  within  the  Church.  The 
people  mentioned  in  the  Pastoral  Epistles  (1  Tim. 
i.  4  ff.,  iv.  7,  vi.  4,  20,  2  Tim.  ii.  14,  16,  23,  Tit. 
iii.  9),  who  delighted  in  dialectical  arts  and  exegeti- 
cal  wiles,  disputes  about  words  and  mythological 
genealogies,  are  already  distinct  from  the  Churches. 
Their  impulse  towards  knowledge  no  longer  abides 
by  the  simple  Christianity.  Those  who  are  combated 
in  the  Johannean  epistles  volatilise  Christianity  itself 
with  their  speculations,  but  are  driven  out  of  the 
communities  (II.  John  7  ff.,  I.  John  ii.  18  if,  iv.  1  f ). 

Now  it  is  characteristic  of  the  intellectualism  of 
all  ages,  that  it  has  little  understanding  of,  and  no 
interest  in,  the  practical  tasks  of  life.  Christian 
gnostics  of  the  later  period  could  not  disprove   the 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM         255 

statement  of  the  heathen  Plotinus  that  they  neglected 
ethics  and  were  worse  than  epicureans.  It  was  the 
same  in  the  earher  period.  "  They  profess  that  they 
know  God,  but  by  their  works  they  deny  Him,  being 
abominable  and  disobedient,  and  unto  every  good 
work  reprobate  (Tit.  i.  16).  "  They  lack  the  fruit  of 
righteousness"  (Hennas,  S.  IX.  xix.  2). 

What  the  Christian  circles  feel  most  in  these  I 
people  is  the  lack  of  Christian  consciousness  and  ! 
sense  of  community  :  they  separate  themselves  from 
the  Church  even  where  no  separation  has  been  made  1 
on  the  Church's  initiative.  In  vain  self-exultation 
they  declare  themselves  pneumatics,  the  true  spiritual 
men,  and  despise  ordinary  people  as  psychic  (Jud.  19). 
In  the  presumption  of  wisdom  they  boast  of  their 
superiority  and  have  envying  and  strife  in  their  heart 
(Jas.  iii.  13  fF.).  The  gnostic  is  arrogant;  he  con- 
siders himself  superior,  he  has  really  known  God 
(I.  John  ii.  3  f.,  iv.  7  f.),  is  in  communion  with  Him 
(i.  6),  and  is  a  being  of  light  (ii.  9).  In  spite  of  that, 
however,  he  neglects  the  simplest  duties  of  brotherly 
love,  hospitality,  and  helping  the  poor  (I.  John  ii.  9, 
iii.  10  f.,  14,  iv.  7,  20,  1  Tim.  i.  5).  Gnostics  have 
no  loving  concern  for  the  widow,  for  orphans,  for 
the  distressed,  for  prisoners  or  emancipated,  for  the 
hungry  or  the  thirsty.  They  keep  far  from  the 
Lord's  Supper  and  prayer  (of  the  Church, 
Ignatius  ad  Smyr.  vi.  2,  vii.   1). 

And  more,  the  gnostic  shrinks  from  confession, 
while  in  the  later  period,  with  the  increase  of 
persecution,  Christianity  emphasises  the  Christian's 
obligation  to  confess  most  expressly.  We  might 
almost   suppose   this    reproach  to    be    a   calumny  of 


256    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

antagonists,  were  it  not  always  repeated  in  regard  to 
nearly  all  the   large  schools  of  the  second    century. 

The  gnostics  must  have  thoroughly  abominated 
the  martyr  fanaticism  of  the  other  Christians. 
That  was  in  keeping  with  their  philosophical  attitude. 
Stoics  like  Epictetus  and  Marcus  Aurelius  saw  in 
Christian  boldness  of  confession  only  obstinacy.  The 
rejection  of  the  Christian  eschatology  and  future 
hope  shaped  the  conduct  of  the  gnostics  even  more 
than  their  fundamental  attitude  to  the  state  and  to 
society.  It  cannot  be  denied  that  there  was  much 
unwholesome  fanaticism  hidden  under  the  cloak  of 
zeal  for  confession — the  later  Church  had  to  adopt  a 
policy  of  dissuasion  in  this  matter.  Then  also  the 
very  sensuous  representatives  of  future  glory,  and  of 
the  reward  that  awaited  martyrs,  which  were  current, 
led  to  the  frequent  seeking  of  martyrdom,  as  the 
visions  of  Perpetua  and  Saturus  show.  A  with- 
drawal of  the  gnostics  here  was  quite  intelligible. 
On  the  other  hand  it  is  not  to  be  lost  sight  of  that 
this  eminently  cold  attitude  of  theirs  deeply  hurt  the 
other  Christians,  and  was  bound  to  strengthen  the 
idea  that  gnostics  lacked  real  boldness  in  confession 
and  proper  courage  of  the  faith. 

Single  martyrdoms  of  gnostically-minded  people 
could  not  alter  this.  "  Si  duo  faciunt  idem,  non  est 
idem "  ;  the  death  of  one  who  did  not  belong  to 
the  Christian  Church  was  not  considered  Christian 
martyrdom. 

In  general  it  is  difficult  to  decide  how  far  this 
barrenness  in  practical  moral  behaviour  went  in  single 
instances.  Allusion  must  be  made  to  the  fact  that  in 
the  apocryphal  Acts  of  the  Apostles  there  is  much 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM         257 

said  of  miracles  of  every  kind,  but  little  of  the  works 
of  love.  The  former  are  simply  wonderful  displays, 
in  some  cases  without  any  moral  reward  ;  only,  as  a 
rule,  the  death  is  followed  by  a  reanimating  of  the 
corpse,  as  a  demonstration  of  divine,  not  diabolical, 
power.  AVhere  sums  of  money,  or  even  whole  pro- 
perties, were  divided  among  the  poor,  the  motive  is 
less  pity  of  those  in  necessity  than  the  effort  to  get 
away  from  possessions  that  are  found  to  worry.  But 
it  must  also  be  maintained  that  the  real  apostle, 
as  distinguished  from  magicians,  faith-healers,  and 
itinerant  charlatans,  was  to  be  recognised  by  good- 
ness, healing  without  reward,  simplicity,  mildness, 
and  joy  in  confession  (Act  Thom.,  ii.  20,  p.  16  ;  Act 
John,  5,  p.  153,  Act  Andr.,  12,  p.  28,  Bonnet).  There 
are  not  lackinof  some  fine  instances  of  moral  instruc- 
tion(Act  Thom.,  vi.  55,  p.  42,  ix.,  p.  56,  and  frequently), 
where  in  particular  the  stress  laid  upon  the  command 
not  to  return  evil  for  evil  is  remarkable.  Moral 
responsibility  for  the  guidance  of  others  cannot  come 
to  finer  expression  than  in  a  word  of  the  Traditions  of 
Matthias  used  by  Basilides :  "  When  the  neighbour 
of  a  chosen  person  sins,  then  the  chosen  person  has 
himself  sinned  ;  because  had  he  so  guided  himself  as 
the  logos  demanded,  then  the  neighbour  would  not 
have  sinned  out  of  respect  for  his  conduct."  As  a 
rule,  however,  they  do  not  go  beyond  the  repudiation 
of  the  serious  heathen  vices.  The  revelation  of  hell  in 
the  Acts  of  Thomas  vi.  52  fF.  describes  in  close  touch 
with  the  Apocalypse  of  Peter  the  punishments  for 
unnatural  vices,  adultery,  calumniation,  theft,  dis- 
solute life,  while  the  other  moral  duties,  like  mildness, 
visitation    of    sick,    burial    of    the    dead,    are    only 

17 


258    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

faintly  indicated  in  negative  form.  The  avoidance  of 
fornication,  covetousness,  gluttony,  is  not  specifically 
Christian.  We  find  similar  exhortations  among  the 
orphics  and  other  pagan  philosophers.  The  disorder 
{arapa^la,  Act  John  29,  p.  166)  also  is  more  re- 
miniscent of  Stoicism  than  of  the  Gospel.  The 
gnostics  sought  the  essence  of  Christianity  elsewhere, 
in  absorption,  in  the  mystery  of  redemption  and — in 
asceticism. 

We  should  do  great  injustice  to  gnostics  were  we 
to  treat  them  as  mere  intellect ualists,  barren  of 
practical  morality.  Many  of  them  bestowed  a  great 
deal  of  thought  upon  morals  :  Isidorus,  the  son  of 
Basilides,  wrote  a  book  on  ethics,  and  in  Clement  of 
Alexandria  highly  interesting  disquisitions  by  different 
gnostics  can  be  read.  Not  only  did  they  think  about 
ethics ;  they  made  a  serious  endeavour  to  practise 
morality.  Only  their  ideal  lay  in  a  totally  different 
direction  from  that  of  the  Gospel.  Their  ground 
principle  is  absolute  dualism  between  spirit  as  good 
and  matter  or  nature  as  evil.  That  man  is  a  natural 
being  is  here  felt  not  to  involve  a  divinely-appointed 
task,  but  to  be  a  consequence  of  human  sin.  Break- 
ing away  from  nature  is  the  parole.  Hence  the 
docetism  of  their  Christology :  Christ  cannot  belong 
to  the  four  elements  (Acts  Thom.,  p.  87).  Hence  the 
spiritualism  of  their  eschatology  :  the  resurrection  has 
already  (inwardly)  taken  place  (2  Tim.  ii.  18).  Hence 
also  their  asceticism  in  the  moral  domain.  This  is  so 
far  from  being  something  originally  Christian,  that  in 
view  of  its  ground  principle  of  dualism  and  its  denial 
of  the  natural-human,  it  can  be  regarded  as  the 
opposite   of  the  Christian  ethic.     It  dominated  the 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM         259 

popular  philosophy  of  the  time.  We  find  it  in  Philo 
and  the  later  Stoics.  Originally  as  foreign  to  Judaism 
as  to  Hellenism,  it  had  assumed  in  Essenism  and  New- 
P}i:hagoreanism,  Jewish  as  well  as  Greek  forms. 
W^e  already  saw  how  powerfully  this  spirit  influenced 
the  youthful  Christianity.  Even  a  Paul  could  not 
entirely  avoid  the  tendency  of  the  time,  however 
clearly  he  held  fast  in  principle  to  the  positive  central 
thoughts  of  the  preaching  of  Jesus.  How  much  less 
his  Churches,  how  much  less  the  later-comers,  to 
whom  the  close  touch  with  the  witnesses  of  the 
Gospel,  and,  above  all,  the  sure  foundation  supplied 
by  the  prophetic  religion  of  Israel,  were  wanting ! 
Some  of  these,  perhaps,  before  their  conversion,  had 
gone  through  the  school  of  Greek  philosophy,  and 
had  belonged  to  an  orphic  society  !  When  Paul  him- 
self defined  the  moral  ideal  of  Christianity  negatively  as 
opposition  to  the  sins  of  heathendom,  what  was  more 
natural  than  to  contrast  the  spirituality  of  Christian 
life  with  the  sensuality  of  the  ancient  world  ?  We 
explained  the  early  appearance  of  such  endeavours 
in  Corinth  as  due  to  the  abhorrence  of  ceremonial 
glorification  of  unchastity.  The  gnostics,  however, 
went  further.  Among  them  we  find  the  body  re- 
garded as  the  source  of  all  defects  (Act  Thom.,  iii.  37, 
p.  28).  The  most  important  task  is  the  disciplining/ 
of  the  body  in  the  sense  of  continually-increased 
asceticism  (1  Tim.  iv.  8) ;  while  the  repression  of 
all  impulse,  the  restricting  of  all  needs  to  a  minimum, 
is  the  goal  of  perfection. 

The  fact  that  we,  who  are  accustomed  to  measure 
by  the  supreme  standard  of  the  Gospel,  see  in  all  this 
something  unnatural,  a  want  of  moral  maturity,  and 


260    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

even  a  lower  stage  of  morality,  ought  not  to  prevent 
us  from  noting  that  for  the  time  it  was  an  intelligible 
utterance  of  moral  energy.  The  degradation  and 
sensuality,  the  shamelessness  with  which  immorality 
flaunted  itself,  the  deterioration  of  naturalia  non  sunt 
turijia  into  the  vilest  unnatural  perversities  were 
bound  to  call  forth  a  reaction  of  the  kind  when  moral 
earnestness  came  into  sway.  Only  that  gnosticism 
makes  the  mistake  of  standing  still  with  the  physical. 
It  did  not  recognise  morality  in  its  special  features. 
The  confusion  of  the  two  domains  is  characteristic  of 
it.  The  inwardness  which  constitutes  the  height  of 
Gospel  apprehension  is  wanting ;  outward  things  are 
decisive  also  in  moral  questions. 

Here,  too,  the  boundaries  fluctuate.  We  find  the 
ascetic  tendencies  both  in  the  Churches  acknowledged 
as  Catholic,  and  in  gnostic  circles  separated  from  the 
Church.  By  some  the  duty  of  moderation  M^as 
emphasised  as  well  as  practical  tasks ;  by  others 
stress  was  laid  on  positive  moral  demands  as  well  as 
on  asceticism.  In  theory  it  makes  indeed  a  great 
difference  whether  the  eyKpdreia  comes  to  light  only 
as  the  involuntary  outflow  of  moral  earnestness,  or  as 
the  consequence  of  a  complete  dualistic  system :  in 
practice  it  is,  as  a  rule,  only  a  difference  of  degree. 
To  mark  the  boundaries  better,  then,  we  might  state 
it  thus : — where  asceticism,  as  complete  abstinence 
from  all  sensuality  on  ground  of  dualistic  theories,  is 
to  be  laid  upon  all  believers,  there  is  Sect.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  high  valuation  of  abstinence  as  a 
special  stage  only  to  be  attained  by  single  persons 
richly  blessed  of  God,  beside  which  the  positive 
morality  remains  recognised  as  the  ideal  of  average 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM        ^61 

Christianity,  is  Catholic.  In  other  words,  the  specific 
Christianity  rescues  itself  only  through  the  theory  of 
the  twofold  morality,  of  which  we  shall  have  to  speak 
in  the  next  section.  Besides  this,  it  is  not  to  be 
forgotten  that  the  majority  of  gnostics  rejected  ori 
set  aside  the  Old  Testament  basis  of  Christianity.. 
They  have  no  share  in  the  rich  treasure  of  moral 
experience  and  the  keen  moral  judgment  formed 
upon  a  strict  monotheism,  which  Christianity  had 
brought  over  from  Judaism  in  the  Old  Testament. 
The  ancient  heathen  spirit  could  assert  itself  without 
any  limitation. 

The  moral  ideal  of  gnosticism  is  rightly  described 
in  the  requirement  which  Thomas  makes  (ii.  28,  p. 
21).  "Refrain  from  fornication,  from  covetousness, 
from  care  for  the  belly."  In  the  first  of  these  de- 
mands, however,  every  sexual  relationship,  even  within 
the  marriage,  in  the  second  all  earthly  possession,  and 
in  the  last,  all  nurture  that  went  beyond  what  was 
absolutely  necessary,  is  forbidden. 

Paul  also,  as  is  well  known,  discusses  the  renuncia- 
tion of  marriage,  but  he  speaks  with  remarkable  re- 
straint, and  urges  objections.  John  of  Asia  Minor 
appears  in  tradition  as  the  apostle  of  virginity,  and 
the  glorification  of  virgins  (Apoc.  xiv.  4)  confirms 
this  view  of  him.  But  it  is  something  quite  different 
from  this  when  false  teachers  are  said  in  the  Pastoral 
Epistles  to  hinder  marriage  ( 1  Tim.  iv.  3).  Procreation 
as  such  was  considered  sin,  and  the  cause  of  death's 
domination.  Christ  came  to  break  away  from  it 
(Satornil  apud  Iren.,  1  xxiv.  2,  Tatian,  ibid.,  xxviii. 
1,  Gospel  of  the  Egyptians).  Hence,  on  the  other 
hand,  we  have  the  idealising  of  Christian  motherhood 


262    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

(1  Tim.  ii.  15).  Sexual  impulse  is  a  foul  frenzy, 
something  devilish  (Act  Joh.,  113,  p.  213).  Stories 
of  the  lust  of  the  devil  and  his  companions  after 
beautiful  women  make  up  the  gnostic  romances. 
The  horribleness  and  insatiableness  of  the  sensual 
passions  are  illustrated  by  all  sorts  of  terrible  tales. 
A  converted  youth  slays  his  love  because  she  does  not 
consent  to  preserve  her  virginity.  An  unbelieving 
youth  lets  himself  be  carried  on  to  violate  the  dead, 
because  his  love  has  not  been  listened  to.  And  further, 
family  life  is  set  forth  in  the  most  direct  way  as  a 
hindrance  to  true  blessedness.  Wife  and  children 
only  cause  worldly  anxiety.  As  a  rule  the  children 
are  either  ill  or  degenerate,  in  both  cases  the  effect 
of  demons.  The  family-sense  becomes  family-egoism. 
For  the  children's  sake  men  rob  and  take  advantage 
of  one  another,  oppress  widows  and  orphans  (Act 
Thomas,  i.  12,  p.  11).  Hence  the  continually-repeated 
exhortation,  "  Flee  from  fornication,  abstain,  renounce 
marriage,"  or  as  it  reads  in  the  parting  words  of  Andrew 
to  Maximilla  (8,  p.  41),  "Be  it  thine  henceforth  to 
keep  thyself  chaste  and  pure,  holy,  unspotted,  clean, 
free  from  adultery,  without  agreeing  to  dealings  with 
our  enemy,  without  injury,  unharmed,  unbroken,  un- 
wounded,  undisturbed,  undivided,  free  from  anger, 
without  participation  in  the  works  of  Cain." 

That  such  doctrines  as  these,  when  spread  among 
a  people  living  till  then  in  moral  disorder,  and  now 
suddenly  awakened  in  conscience,  achieved  success, 
is  quite  intelligible.  It  may  indeed  have  happened, 
as  the  Acts  of  Thomas  report,  that  bride  and  bride- 
groom from  the  very  marriage-day  renounced  wedlock, 
and  man  and  wife  separated  from  one  another.     In 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM        263 

particular,  the  continually-recurring  narratives  of  a 
converted  wife  avoiding  common  life  with  her  un- 
believing husband  seem  to  be  taken  from  life.  We 
have  the  express  witness,  not  only  of  Christian 
apologists,  but  also  of  the  heathen  physician  Galen, 
that  among  the  Christians  many  M^omen  and  men 
abstained  all  their  life  from  intercourse  of  sex.  It 
is  not  possible  for  us  to  estimate  the  actual  spread 
of  this  kind  of  absolute  renunciation.  That  it  would 
have  caused  the  abolition  of  the  sect  is  not  correct ; 
at  the  present  day  in  Russia  we  still  see  sects  of  the 
same  kind  continuing  from  generation  to  generation 
by  a  system  of  propagandism  and  adoption.  Self- 
mutilation,  the  proper  consequence  of  such  doctrine, 
was  reprobated  by  a  fortunate  inconsistency.  Passages 
like  Matthew  xix.  11  f.,  which  induced  the  youthful 
Origen  to  take  this  course,  are  cautiously  and  prudently 
explained  by  Basilides. 

AVith  the  rejection  of  the  wedding  goes  hand  in 
hand  an  uncertainty  in  the  estimation  of  the  female 
sex.  On  the  one  hand  the  women  are  little  thought 
of.  In  the  Clementine  homilies  (iii.  22)  it  is  expressly 
declared  that  the  nature  of  the  woman  is  much  in- 
ferior to  that  of  man.  Women,  except  the  mother 
of  Clement,  play  almost  no  role  in  this  romance.  In 
the  Gospel  of  the  Egyptians,  Salome,  on  asking  how 
long  death  will  rule,  receives  the  humiliating  reply, 
"  So  long  as  ye  women  bear ;  I  am  come  to  abolish 
the  works."  In  the  Pistis  Sophia,  the  disciples  want 
to  push  away  Mary  Magdalene,  so  that  the  Lord 
must  take  her  under  His  protection.  Speculation 
is  indulged  in  as  to  why  the  women  were  not  present 
at  the  Lords  Supper,  and  the  discovery  is  made  that 


264    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

they  had  behaved  in  an  unseemly  fashion.  On  the 
other  hand,  in  many  circles  individual  women,  i.e., 
especially  virgins,  must  have  occupied  a  leading 
position.  Like  Mary  Magdalene  in  gnostic  writings, 
so  in  some  schools  prophetesses  play  a  leading  part : 
the  (perhaps  fabulous)  Helena  of  Simon  Magus,  the 
pseudonymous  Jezebel  of  the  Nicolaitans,  Philumene 
of  Apelles,  and  Marcellina  the  Carpocratian,  whose 
settlement  in  Rome  under  Anicetus  is  recorded  in 
the  oldest  Roman  list  of  bishops. 

By  friend  and  foe  it  was  acknowledged  that  zealously 
pious  women  offered  the  best  spoil  for  the  propaganda 
of  these  gnostic  circles.  That  follows  from  the  biting 
derision  of  those  women  taken  captive  by  false  teachers, 
laden  with  sins,  led  away  by  divers  lusts,  ever  learning, 
and  never  able  to  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth 
(2  Tim.  iii.  6),  and  also  from  the  glorification  of  con- 
verted women  in  apocryphal  romances.  Bigoted 
women  have  always  been  fanatics  for  ascetic  heroism, 
and  have  often  been  deceived  and  slighted  by  masters 
whom  they  admired. 

In  the  second  place  complete  renunciation  is  re- 
quired in  the  matter  of  earthly  possessions.  Here, 
too,  men  like  Luke  and  James  can  be  brought  in  for 
the  sake  of  comparison  as  ordinary  Christian  repre- 
sentatives of  the  ideal  of  poverty.  Yet  the  attitude 
of  the  gnostics  is  different  and  more  fundamental. 
They  demand  actual  and  perfect  separation  from  all 
earthly  relationships  (Act  Thom.,  p.  11)  to  restore 
perfect  exemption  from  care.  In  this  evangelical 
notion  there  is  involved  an  indifference  towards  the 
practical  tasks  of  life.  Matt.  vi.  25  f.  is  referred  to 
as  ground  for  asceticism  (pp.  21,  27).     The  imitation 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM        265 

of  Jesus'  Life  of  Poverty,  plays  a  large  part  here 
(p.  81).  The  gnostic  apostle  boasts  of  his  poverty: 
he  has  fulfilled  the  will  of  his  Lord  in  being  poor, 
needy,  a  stranger,  a  slave,  despised,  a  prisoner,  hungry, 
thirsty,  naked,  and  barefoot  (p.  89).  He  wears  only 
one  cloak  (p.  60),  and  those  who  are  converted  by 
him  must  lay  aside  all  outward  adornment  (p.  57). 
Even  magisterial  office  is  held  to  be  a  hindrance  to 
blessedness,  which  it  is  best  to  renounce  in  order  to 
share  the  poor  itinerant  life  of  the  Apostle  (Mart. 
Andr.,  i.  7,  p.  50).  Especial  value  is  laid  upon  forsaking 
home  for  the  Lord's  sake :  not  fields,  nor  cattle,  nor 
wife  can  excuse  when  the  Lord's  call  goes  forth  (Act 
Thom.,  p.  43).  Indeed,  the  principle  is  here  clearly 
expressed :  Possession  is  sin ;  and  loss,  even  when 
involuntary,  is  deliverance  from  sin  (Clem.  Horn., 
XV.  9).  Certain  gnostics  like  Carpocrates  declared 
the  communism  of  Plato,  with  its  watchword,  "  Private 
property  is  theft,"  as  a  demand  of  Christianity.  How 
far,  however,  such  thoughts  were  actually  put  into 
practice  is  at  least  very  doubtful.  We  shall  credit 
the  Christians  with  voluntary  poverty  as  readily  as 
many  a  Greek  philosopher  who  gave  up  his  possessions 
in  order  to  avoid  the  vexations  to  which  the  possessor 
was  much  exposed. 

But  it  is  again  a  fortunate  inconsistence  that 
beside  the  sentence  which  makes  possession  sin,  we 
find  it  stated  also  that  poverty  does  not  make 
righteous,  for  Jesus  has  blessed  only  the  believing 
poor  (Clem.  Hom.,  xv.  10),  and  that  among  hindrances 
to  blessedness  poverty  appears  as  well  as  riches.  The 
cynical  world-contempt  which  deprived  itself  of  its 
property  by  destroying  it,  is  met  by  the  employment 


^66    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

of  it  according  to  the  Christian  view  on  behalf  of  the 
poor.  John  restores  the  broken  jewels  of  two 
pupils  of  the  philosopher  Crates,  for  which  they 
had  given  all  their  means,  has  them  sold,  and  divides 
the  proceeds  among  the  poor  (Ps.  Abdias,  v.  14). 
More  strongly  even  than  in  the  philosophers  there  here 
comes  to  light,  ever  and  again,  the  ground-thought 
of  all  Christian  ethics,  that  the  important  matter  is 
not  the  thing  but  the  intention :  man  sees  what  is 
before  his  eyes,  God  looks  on  the  heart. 

/  Lastly,  the  ascetic  spirit  found  expression  also  in 
the  domain  of  sustenance.  This  serves  to  strengthen 
the  body,  and  thus — according  to  the  ground- 
principle  of  gnosticism — promotes  the  evil  in  man. 
Therefore  not  only  is  extravagance  in  eating  and 
drinking  forbidden,  but  sustenance  itself  is  limited 
to  bare  necessities.  The  strict  consequence,  viz., 
suicide  by  starvation,  is  obviated  by  the  natural 
impulse  of  men  towards  self-preservation.  The 
practical  demand  which   remains  is,    as   a   rule,  the 

I  renunciation  of  wine  and  eating  of  flesh  :  so,  e.g:,  with 
the  false  teachers  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles  (1  Tim. 
iv.  3).  Here,  too,  however,  there  are  again  various 
methods  and  stages  of  abstinence.  We  already 
found  inclinations  to  voluntary  abstinence  among  the 
Roman  Christians  of  the  first  period.  Almost  uni- 
versal within  the  Christian  Church  of  this  later  period 
is  the  declining  of  meat  offered  to  idols,  and  as  we 
saw,  this  could  occasionally  be  increased  to  the 
renunciation  of  flesh  altogether.  The  motive  is 
abhorrence  of  paganism  and  its  diabolical  powers. 
It  coincides  well  with  dualistic  views,  but  is  never- 
theless something  entirely  different  from  the  demand 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM        267 

for  the  limitation  of  sustenance  as  such.  Here,  also, 
there  are  very  different  stages.  The  apostles  of 
gnostic  romances  start  as  a  rule  from  the  conflict 
against  gluttony,  soon  bring  forward  vegetarianism 
as  a  principle,  and  finally  reduce  even  the  eating  of 
herbs  as  much  as  possible.  In  this  there  is  still  a 
distinction  between  what  the  heroes  of  asceticism  do 
— John  takes  one  date  every  Sunday  (p.  154), — and 
what  they  ask  of  their  followers  (Act  Thom., 
pp.  10,  22,  64).  Here,  too,  Jesus  appears  as  the 
pattern  of  complete  asceticism  in  virtue  of  His 
fasting,  while  at  the  same  time  He  redeems  from 
Adam's  sin,  which  consisted  in  eating. 

In  the  interests  of  vegetarianism  the  Gospels  were 
directly  falsified.  An  ascetic  like  John  the  Baptist 
could  not  have  eaten  locusts.  Accordingly,  instead 
of  aKplSe?  (Matt.  iii.  4),  ejKph  was  written,  "  he  ate 
wild  honey,  which  tasted  like  manna,  like  oil-cake." 
Jesus,  AVho  has  to  be  explained  as  come  to  do  away 
with  the  bloody  sacrifice,  could  not  have  longed  for 
the  Passover,  and  so  a  ju-h  was  immediately  inserted 
in  Luke  xxii.  15,  "  I  have  not  desired  to  eat  this 
Passover  with  you"  (Epiph.  Ha^r.,  xxx.  13,  16,  22). 
It  is  known  that  the  disinclination  to  use  wine  was 
so  great  that  even  at  the  Lord's  Supper  water  was 
employed.  But  it  is  worthy  of  remark  that  even  the 
care  of  the  body  was  neglected,  the  usual  anointing 
with  oil  avoided,  and  even  batliing  discontinued. 
There  have  always  been  extraordinary  people  who 
seek  to  please  God  by  their  filth. 

The  whole  idea  of  these  gnostic  circles  can  be 
best  reproduced  in  that  word  of  the  Gospel  to  the 
Egyptians    (from   the    Oxyrhynchus-collection),    "  If 


'268    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

ye  do  not  fast  to  the  world,  ye  cannot  find  the 
Kingdom  of  God."  This  vrjarreueiv  Tov  KocTjULov  is  the 
most  pregnant  expression  for  the  turning-away  from 
the  world  which  Andrew  in  his  last  word  of  exhorta- 
tion lays  to  the  heart  of  men  of  all  ages  and  positions  : 
"  Leave  all  this  life,  and  despise  everything  temporal " 
(p.  27). 

However  much  these  views  may  strike  us  as  per- 
verted, we  shall  not  fail  to  see  that  a  great  amount  of 
moral  earnestness  and  moral  energy  is  demonstrated 
in  them.  To  be  sure,  we  may  not  overlook  the  other 
side :  revolt  against  nature  avenged  itself  when 
asceticism  was  transformed  into  the  opposite.  It  is 
perhaps  the  most  remarkable,  certainly  the  saddest 
thing  in  our  whole  field,  that  immediately  beside  this 
power  of  abstinence,  the  wildest  licentiousness  pre- 
vailed. The  filthiest  immorality  appeared,  and  was 
justified  by  horrible  theories  as  the  true  development 
of  the  Christian  spirit  and  Christian  freedom.  We 
can  quite  understand  that  the  conflict  against  such  a 
tendency  in  Christianity  was  waged  with  the  greatest 
keenness.  The  Apocalypse,  Ignatius,  the  Epistle  of 
Jude  and  the  Pastoral  Epistles  oppose  it  in  the  most 
uncompromising  manner. 

That  consideration  lets  us  see  the  need  for  caution. 
Injustice  is  easy  to  opponents  who  are  credited  with 
everything  evil,  and  things  are  attributed  to  them  of 
which  they  are  absolutely  ignorant.  Thus  in  2  Tim. 
iii.  1  fF.,  an  apocalyptic  description  of  the  general 
depravity  of  the  end  of  the  world  is  evidently  applied 
directly  to  the  false  teachers  who  are  opposed.  We 
cannot,  following  that  description  and  without  further 
investigation,  describe  them  as  "  lovers  of  self,  lovers 


THE    BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM        269 

of  money,  boastful,  haughty,  railers,  disobedient  to 
parents,  unthankful,  unholy,  without  natural  affec- 
tion, implacable,  slanderers,  without  self-control, 
fierce,  no  lovers  of  good,  traitors,  headstrong,  puffed 
up,  lovers  of  pleasure,  rather  than  lovers  of  God." 
What  we .  can  be  quite  certain  of  is  that  in  Asia 
Minor,  towards  the  end  of  the  first  century,  there 
were  Christian  circles  which  were  closely  in  touch 
with  paganism,  had  no  scruple  in  eating  meat  offered 
to  idols,  and,  as  it  seems,  preached  in  the  domain  of 
sex  a  far-going  freedom.  Hence  the  seer  compares 
their  doctrine  to  that  of  Balaam,  who  seduced  the 
Israelites  to  eat  meat  offered  to  idols  and  do  fornica- 
tion ;  hence  he  names  their  prophetess  after  Queen 
Jezebel,  of  whom  the  same  was  related  (ii.  6,  14,  20). 
In  the  same  way  the  Epistle  of  Jude  speaks  of  people 
who  turn  the  grace  of  God  into  licentiousness :  like 
the  fallen  angels  (Gen.  vi.),  and  the  Sodomites  (Gen. 
xix.),  they  pollute  their  flesh;  through  their  vile 
theories,  which  help  the  bestial  in  man  to  come  upper- 
most, they  dishonour  the  Lord  and  slander  the 
heavenly  powers.  They  separate  themselves  arro- 
gantly from  the  Church,  and  boastingly  call  them- 
selves ministers  of  the  Spirit,  while  they  are  guided 
entirely  by  their  sensual  impulses  ;  they  are  veritable 
dirtspots  on  the  Christian  Church  when  they  share 
her  love-feasts,  murmuring  the  while,  and  railing  at 
fate.  According  to  the  Pastoral  Epistles,  some  have 
wandered  away,  following  Satan,  and  have  thus  given 
the  enemies  of  Christianity  occasion  to  indulge  in 
invective.  The  context  here  shows  that  sins  against 
the  seventh  commandment  are  being  dealt  with. 
The  same  thing  is  indicated    in   the  warning  which 


270    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

Ignatius  gives  against  those  who  carry  about  the 
name  of  Christian  only  in  wicked  guile,  while  yet 
they  practise  things  unworthy  of  God  (Eph.  vii.  1). 

It  is  not  right  to  treat  all  these  things  only  as 
single  instances  of  moral  error,  as  proof  that  the 
moral  spirit  of  Christianity  even  later  on  was  not  able 
to  drive  out  all  sin,  or  as  parallels  to  the  occurrence 
in  Corinth  which  we  have  spoken  of  above.  What 
meets  us  here  is  rather  a  system.  The  conduct  of 
the  Valentinians,  as  related  by  Irenjeus  (adv.  Haeres. 
1  vi.  3),  reminds  us  of  Corinthian  libertinism,  eating 
meat  offered  to  idols,  participating  in  banquets  in  the 
Temple,  going  to  the  theatre  and  circus.  But  they 
have  a  theory  to  justify  it :  "  fleshly  things  for  the 
fleshly,  and  spiritual  things  for  the  spiritual."  It  is 
not  enough  either  to  recall  the  behaviour  of  the 
Corinthian  Church  and  find  here  a  one-sided  and 
exaggerated  emphasising  of  Christian  freedom.  This 
frivolous  libertinism  is  no  more  due  to  the  Pauline 
teaching  of  freedom  than  the  asceticism  of  the 
gnostics  to  the  Apostle's  ascetic  tendencies. 

Pauline  formulas,  nevertheless,  were  constantly 
employed  as  catch-words.  In  the  face  of  advancing 
Jewish  Christian  narrowness,  some  may  have  been  con- 
cerned to  preserve  a  free  attitude  towards  paganism 
as  well  as  towards  Judaism.  Opposition  to  law 
may  have  passed  into  lawlessness,  but  ultimately  the 
phenomenon  is  gnostic,  and  is  intelligible  only  as  the 
result  of  dualism  and  nature-deification.  The  proof 
of  this  is,  that  even  later  on,  when  the  Christian 
Churches  were  entirely  free  from  enemies,  the  two 
practical  tendencies  are  distinctly  to  be  distinguished 
within  the  gnostic  schools,  the  more  strictly  ascetic 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM        271 

and  the  lascivious  libertine.  The  great  heads  of 
schools,  like  Basilides,  Valentinus,  and  Marcion  all 
stand  on  the  side  of  the  former.  Only  the  Carpo- 
cratians  are  reproached  with  having  taken  over,  with 
Platonic  communism,  unrestricted  intercourse  with 
women,  not  only  as  tlieory,  but  as  actual  practice  in 
horrible  nightly  debauches.  As  types  of  the  liber- 
tines we  may  take  the  "  gnostics  "  in  the  narrower 
sense,  the  Cainites  and  others  whose  dissolute  orgies 
ceremonially  glorified  the  obscene.  In  particular, 
Prodicus  is  adduced  by  Clement  of  Alexandria  as  a 
teacher  of  unchastity,  and  spreader  abroad  of  immoral 
mysteries.  Plotinus  wages  a  keen  conflict  with  similar 
gnostics,  and  the  Coptic-gnostic  works  show  how 
much  the  inconsistency  of  these  two  parties  was  felt. 

In  view  of  these  considerations,  we  shall  have  to 
judge  those  phenomena  in  early  Christianity  as 
growths  of  early  Christian  gnosticism,  as  extrava-l 
gances  of  the  gnostic-dualistic  ethic.  Naturally,  the' 
opponents  have  a  certain  amount  of  right,  when  they 
represent  the  sensuality  of  the  teachers  and  their  loss 
of  good  conscience  as  the  cause  (1  Tim.  i.  19  f, 
2  Tim.  iv.  3).  Evil  practice  preceded  evil  theory, 
the  latter  being  set  up  to  cover  the  former.  On  the 
other  hand,  we  may  not  undervalue  the  significance 
of  the  underlying  idea.  The  whole  attitude  of 
gnosticism  towards  the  physical,  the  non-Christian 
element  of  Christian  gnosis,  i.e.,  the  dualism  between 
spirit  and  matter,  and  the  contempt  for  the  natural, 
are,  to  a  certain  degree,  answerable  for  this  degenera- 
tion. Even  where  a  strong  ascetic  spirit  rules,  we 
sometimes  find  these  natural-moral  things  treated 
with  a  nakedness  which  pains  us. 


272    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

The  method  employed  by  gnosticism  of  taking 
the  sensual  as  parable  for  the  supra-sensual  leads  to 
twin-significations  which  clearly  reveal  how  easy  the 
transition  was  from  the  strictest  earnestness  to  the 
most  external  shamelessness.  Such  an  occasion  of 
transition  is  described  in  the  Acts  of  Thomas,  p.  53  : 
"  There  will  come  false  apostles  and  prophets  of 
wickedness  {avoimla),  whose  end  shall  correspond  with 
their  doing ;  they  preach  and  order  people  to  flee 
from  godlessness,  but  are  themselves  always  found  in 
sin  clad  with  sheepskin  but  inwardly  ravening  wolves, 
who,  unsatisfied  with  one  wife,  defile  many  women, 
and  while  maintaining  that  they  despise  children, 
destroy  many  children  .  .  .  .,  who  are  saddened  by 
the  good  fortune  of  others,  and  rejoice  in  their 
misfortune,  who  are  not  satisfied  with  their  possessions 
but  wish  everything  to  serve  them,  whose  mouth 
speaks  otherwise  than  their  heart  desires,  who  advise 
others  to  guard  against  evil,  but  themselves  do 
nothing  good  ;  before  whom  adultery,  theft,  oppression, 
greed  is  hateful,  while  yet  in  secret  they  do  all  those 
things  which  they  teach  others  are  not  to  be  done." 
What  is  here  comprehended  as  pure  hypocrisy  ap- 
pears elsewhere  as  an  organised  system.  Gnosticism 
operates  readily  with  the  idea  of  a  reversal  of  all 
values :  "  Unless  you  make  right  left  and  left  right, 
over  under  and  under  over,  before  behind  and  behind 
before,  then  ye  cannot  obtain  the  Kingdom  of 
God."  "  The  twain  must  become  one,  the 
outside  as  the  inside,  the  man  as  the  woman, 
neither  man  nor  woman  "  (Gospel  of  the  Egyptians). 
That  can  be  taken  in  a  very  serious  sense,  and 
perhaps    it    was    so    intended.      But    it    is    only   a 


THE    BEGINNINGS   OF   GNOSTICISM         273 

short  step  from  that  to  the  perversion   of  all  moral 
notions. 

In  general  it  is  one  of  the  most  suspicious  aspects 
of  every  sort  of  gnosticism  that  it  does  not  deal 
altogether  strictly  with  truth.  That,  to  some  extent, 
is  grounded  in  the  distinction  between  esoteric  and 
exoteric  doctrine,  or  in  its  theory  of  interpretation  to 
which  all  is  "symbolic  and  economic."  The  great 
thought,  "  all  earthly  is  only  a  likeness,"  found  here 
perfect  expression.  The  variety  of  the  forms  in  which 
Christ  appeared,  the  wealth  of  names  under  which 
He  was  known  and  called  upon,  may  correspond  to 
the  various  degrees  of  understanding  which  were 
possessed.  The  simplicity  of  early  Christian  con- 
ceptions occupies,  in  spite  of  its  concreteness,  a 
higher  moral  level ;  it  is  sincere  and  true,  while  this 
docetic  Christology,  with  its  showiness  and  elusive- 
ness,  has  something  deceitful  in  it. 

When    Christ   appears   to  His  beloved  disciple  in 

the  hollow  of  the  mountain,  and  says,  "  John,  for  the 

multitude  there   in  Jerusalem    shall    I    be    crucified, 

pierced  with  lances,  struck  with  a  reed,  made  to  drink 

vinegar  and  gall  ....  but   nothing   of  that  which 

ye  shall  say  of  me,  have  I  endured  "  (Act.  Joh.  97, 

101,  p.  199  fF.),  it  is  almost  falsehood.     And  that  is 

repeated  by  the  disciples.     Thomas  lies  without  any 

concern  to  the  king  ;  the  palace  is  ready  to  the  roof 

— and  yet  there  is  not  a  single  stone  there ;  he  meant 

the  heavenly  palace.    John  even  circumvents  his  Lord  : 

in  order  to  listen  to  Him,  he  pretends  to  sleep.     The 

example   is   copied    by   their    followers.      Mygdonia 

gives  herself  out  to  be  unwell  in  order  to  avoid  her 

husband,  and  Maximilla  deceives  her  lord  by  substitut- 

18 


274    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

ing  a  maid-servant  for  herself.      All  this  shows  that 
here  truth  did  not  enjoy  the  regard  that  was  its  due. 

In  conclusion  we  have  to  notice  the  attitude  of  the 
gnostic  circles  to  the  Christian  Churches.  Here  they 
cannot  be  spared  the  reproach  that,  unconscious  of 
the  missionary  task  of  Christianity,  they  settled  them- 
selves in  parasite-fashion  on  the  stem  of  the  Christian 
Churches,  turning  their  propaganda  not  so  much  on 
the  heathen  as  on  Christians,  members  of  Christian 
communities.  If  we  start  from  the  apocryphal  Acts 
of  the  Apostles,  then  the  missionary  interest  in  these 
circles  seems  to  have  been  extraordinarily  active.  But 
that,  too,  is  only  falsehood.  It  is  due  to  the  adoption  of 
the  literary  form  of  the  journey-novel  on  the  common 
Christian  presupposition  that  the  Apostles  had  been 
missionaries  to  the  whole  world.  If  we  look  more 
closely  at  these  missionary  pictures,  we  very  soon  see 
that  they  lack  the  experiences  of  actual  missionary  life. 
There  never  was  such  mission-work  ;  missions  have 
such  successes  only  in  fiction.  The  points  which 
every  Christian  mission  sermon  must  contain  are 
made  subservient,  in  a  remarkable  way,  to  those  others 
in  which  we  see  the  peculiar  content  of  this  popular 
gnosticism.  The  purpose  of  the  stories  as  a  whole 
is  evidently  no  other  than  to  form  a  foundation  for 
these  thoughts  within  the  Christian  Churches.  The 
propagandism  of  the  gnostics  among  the  Christians 
nmst  have  been  extraordinarily  active.  We  may  see 
in  it  an  outflow  of  high  moral  inspiration,  and  we 
shall  be  glad  to  reckon  this  to  their  honour. 

But  on  the  other  hand  we  must  admit  the  right  of 
their  opponents,  who  complained  that  they  were  fond 
of  fishing  in  troubled  waters.     Here  the  situation  is 


THE   BEGINNINGS   OF  GNOSTICISM        275 

similar  to  that  of  Judaistic  propaganda.  A  certain 
moral  energy  is  united  with  a  want  of  moral  know- 
ledge, with  failure  to  recognise  the  highest  moral 
duties.  To  trace  the  whole  movement  to  covetous- 
ness  and  similar  passions,  or  lower  impulses  and  lusts, 
is  in  many  cases  certainly  unjust.  But  certainly  want  \ 
of  love,  of  Christian  brotherhood,  and  of  sense  of) 
communion,  lies  at  the  bottom  of  it.  The  confining 
of  their  propaganda  to  the  Christians  after  the 
manner  of  sects  is  only  another  form  of  the  habit  of 
thought  which  we  have  already  become  acquainted 
with  as  fear  of  confession  and  avoidance  of  suffering. 
Add  to  that  the  secret  doings  and  the  double-dealing. 
False  prophets  like  the  one  described  by  Hernias 
(JNIand.  xi.),  or  like  the  Valentinian  JNIark,  deceived 
their  own  followers  by  a  sequence  of  magical  jugglings 
and  legerdemain.  Others  have  at  least  in  teaching  conA 
cealed  their  heresies  behind  good  Christian-soundingl 
formulas,  giving  deadly  poison  in  honey-sweet  wine, 
as  Ignatius  says  (Trail,  vi.  2).  Without  doubt  we 
have  here  a  form  of  Christian  morality  which  bears 
no  comparison  with  the  practical  piety  of  Catholic 
Christianity.  Even  if  the  suspicions  were  false  or 
exaggerated,  the  opponents  were  entirely  right  in 
their  contentions  that  what  gave  itself  out  as  higher 
knowledge,  was,  when  morally  valued,  a  lower  form 
of  Christianity,  unfruitful  and  altered  in  a  heathen 
ascetic  fashion,  or  even  perverted  into  frivolous 
libertinism. 

Nevertheless    gnosticism    is    a    proof  of  the   high  \ 
morality    of    early    Christianity.       For     what     had 
Christianity  to  offer  to  attract  speculative  minds  and 
to  inspire  reflection  on  tlie  Gospel,  the  very  Gospel 


276    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG  THE   HEATHEN 

which  Paul  called  "  to  the  Greeks,  foolishness  "  ?  It 
had  the  thought  of  redemption  on  the  one  hand, 
the  moral  power  on  the  other.  It  was  a  practical 
philosophy,  a  vita  philosophica  without  any  philosophic 
system.  This  the  gnostics  endeavoured  to  provide 
(Harnack).  That  they  undertook  this  is  proof  of  the 
extraordinary  impression  which  the  moral  life  of  the 
Christians  made. 


LATER  CHRISTIANITY  AMONG  THE  HEATHEN. 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

The  Churches  of  the  Transition  to 
Catholicism. 

The  great  majority  of  Christian  communities 
adopted  an  attitude  of  decided  opposition  to  the 
form  of  Christianity  which  we  have  just  spoken  of. 
Conservative  of  all  early  Christian  traditions,  slow  to 
adopt  new  thoughts  and  influences,  and  protecting 
the  old  with  a  system  of  guarantees,  the  average 
Christianity  develops  gradually  into  Catholicism. 
It  is  the  Christianity  of  "  sound  doctrine,"  unfriendly 
to  speculation  and  emphasising  the  practical  tasks  of 
the  Christians.  Instead  of  gnosis  it  demands  active 
life ;  instead  of  asceticism  it  asks  for  brotherly  love, 
helpful  sacrifice  of  self  for  others  and  the  community, 
and  obedience  to  Church  ordinances. 

It  is  a  Catholic  Christianity  also  in  so  far  as  it 
betrays  no  essentially  local  colour.  It  is  true  that  the 
individual  communities,  or  rather  the  Churches  of  the 
separate  provinces,  are  still  distinguished  from  one 
another.  The  practical  spirit  of  Roman  Christianity  is 
well  known :  it  defined  the  character  of  the  whole 
western  piety  of  this  period.  Egypt  at  all  times 
exhibited  a  great  leaning  to  gnosticism,  to  contempla- 
tion and  to  asceticism,  while  Syria,  in  spite  of  its  being 

277 


278     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

called  the  home  of  gnosticism,  is,  on  the  whole,  always 
more  concerned  with  the  practical  life.  It  is  perhaps 
possible  in  the  difference  between  the  Epistle  of 
Barnabas  and  the  Didache  to  observe  something  of 
the  distinction  between  these  two  districts ;  and  the 
Epistle  of  James  may  exhibit  still  more  specially  the 
nature  of  Palestinian  Christianity.  But  the  origin  of 
these  works  is  doubtful,  and  the  great  uncertainty 
which  was  felt  concerning  them  among  the  literary 
historians  of  early  Christianity  is  a  clear  proof  that 
no  conspicuous  local  peculiarities  existed.  No  more 
is  the  so-called  second  Epistle  of  Clement,  with  its 
mixture  of  speculation  and  practice,  in  any  way 
characteristic  of  Rome.  The  Pastoral  Epistles  belong- 
to  the  whole  Church.  At  least  what  is  individual  is 
outweighed  by  what  is  Catholic.  It  would  be  too 
bold  to  bring  forward  the  various  forms  which  we 
meet  as  local  and  isolated  pictures. 

In  the  first  place  one  common  feature  is  the 
Christian  moral  ideal  in  its  marked  distinction  from 
that  of  the  earlier  periods.  There  is  no  more  thought 
of  leaving  the  Spirit  of  God,  as  Paul  did,  to  produce 
His  effect  in  the  individual  Christian  and  in  the 
communities,  and  also  to  create  something  new  in 
respect  of  moral  forms ;  everything  is  regulated  in 
the  greatest  possible  degree. 

Yet  it  is  not  simply  the  Jewish  method  of  life. 
The  "  law  of  liberty  "  spoken  of  in  Jas.  ii.  1 2  is  not 
the  Old  Testament  law,  about  which  a  mighty  con- 
flict was  once  waged.  Probably  the  new  ideal  was 
affected  by  the  Mosaic  law,  and  perhaps  still  more 
by  the  deposit  of  experience  and  knowledge  con- 
tained in  the  Old  Testament  wisdom-literature.     The 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  279 

Christians  of  this  period  possessed  a  certain  know- 
ledge of  the  Scripture  from  their  youth,  which  served 
in  practice  as  instruction  in  righteousness  (2  Tim. 
iii.  15  f.).  Occasionally,  too,  the  argumentation  is 
taken  directly  out  of  the  law,  although,  as  a  rule,  with 
extensive  modification  of  its  spiritual  purport  ( 1  Tim. 
V.  18,  Barn.  x.).  A  Jewish  moral  catechism  was 
probably  used  for  the  instruction  of  converts.  But 
the  leading  thought  in  that  "  law  of  liberty "  is  the 
Gospel  itself,  apprehended  as  a  complex  of  demands ; 
this  is  what  is  meant  in  the  proclamation  of  Christ  as 
"  the  new  law."  The  sayings  of  the  Lord  gathered 
in  the  interval  become  increasingly  important,  and 
enrich  the  traditional  catechism ;  an  appeal  to  them 
settles  all  possible  questions  as  to  the  shaping  of  the 
life  of  the  community  and  of  the  individual.  Also 
externalities  directly  counter  to  the  Spirit  of  Jesus 
are  legitimised  by  them.  The  new  law  is  not  to  be 
viewed  as  a  compulsory  yoke,  like  the  old  (Barn, 
ii.  6) ;  yet  by  reference  to  Matt,  xi  29,  it  is  called 
the  yoke  of  the  Lord,  and  this  yoke  is  by  no  means 
easy  ;  on  the  contrary  it  is  so  heavy  that  few  are  able 
to  bear  it  altogether  (Did.  vi.  2). 

Christianity  was  not  able  to  resist  the  tendency  of 
the  time.  To  the  Gospel  and  its  free  spirit  are 
united  the  gloomier  thoughts  of  asceticism.  These 
were  not  allowed  complete  supremacy.  The  simple 
demands  of  a  positive  morality  were  still  allowed. 
But  the  former  occupy  the  leading  place ;  they 
brought  perfection.  The  bearing  of  the  whole  yoke  of 
the  Lord  means  to  live  an  ascetic  life,  and  at  the  same 
time  to  perform  the  duties  of  love  and  of  social  life. 
The  stress  is  on  the  former.     It  is  the  more  difficult, 


280     CHRISTIANITY  AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

the  higher,  the  more  meritorious  ;  only  it  is  not  to  be 
demanded  of  all.  Each  one  has  his  own  special  gifts 
from  God.  There  is  a  gift  of  abstinence.  He  who 
possesses  it  is  not  to  pride  himself,  but  to  thank  God 
for  it.  From  the  man  who  has  it  not,  it  is  not  to  be 
required ;  even  without  it  he  can  please  God  and  be 
saved. 

This  is  the  theory  of  the  twofold  morality  with 
which  the  early  Christian  spirit,  holding  more  strictly 
to  the  Gospel,  met  the  gnostic  demand  for  the 
unconditional  asceticism  of  all  real  Christians.  It  is 
a  large  concession  to  the  dominant  dualism,  but 
nevertheless  it  saved  one  of  the  most  precious  posses- 
sions of  Christianity — the  evangelical  conception  of 
morality. 

All  the  dangers  which  the  gnostic  ethic  brought 
with  it  can  be  obviated  by  this  theory.  The  gross 
Individualism  which  withdrew  into  itself  and  despised 
others,  was  met  by  the  urgent  demand  for  common 
effort.  The  spiritual  pride  of  asceticism  could  be 
broken  by  the  consideration  that  abstinence  is  only 
a  gift  of  God's  grace,  for  which  one  ought  to  be 
grateful.  The  struggle  to  do  more  than  was  possible, 
which  led  to  hypocrisy,  was  obviated  by  the  exhorta- 
tion to  do  only  so  much  as  was  humanly  possible. 
The  unnatural  change  from  exaggerated  asceticisin 
to  sensual  dissipation  was  prevented  through  the 
acknowledgment  of  the  claims  of  natural  needs 
and  impulses.  All  the  special  dangers  which 
gnosticism  could  not  fail  to  bring  along  with  its 
moral  ideal,  were,  where  not  removed,  essentially 
weakened.  Where  there  is  any  mention  of  con- 
tinence, e.g,^  2  Clem.  xv.  1,  what  is  meant  is  first  and 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  281 

foremost  the  inward  breaking  loose  from  the  goods 
and  joys,  the  sins  and  vices  of  the  world,  the  con- 
quest and  subjugation  of  one's  sinful  impulses. 
Above  all  it  could  only  have  a  wholesome  effect 
that  great  positive  tasks  were  laid  on  a  man,  and  that, 
as  the  member  of  a  closely-knit  community,  he  was 
under  a  constant  disciplinCo  It  may  cause  remark 
that  the  moral  ideal  is  still  often  clad  in  negative 
forms.  To  be  unstained,  without  reproach  and 
blameless,  is  still  the  watchword.  But  the  Christian 
teachers  know  how  to  elaborate  this  ideal  in  a 
wonderful  positive  fashion  (1  Tim.  vi.  11  fF.,  2  Tim.  ii. 
22,  Tit.  ii.  1  fF.,  iii.  1  f,  Jas.  iii.  17  f.).  What  we 
already  recognised  in  the  post-Pauline  period  as 
essential  to  the  formation  of  a  constant  morality — 
viz.,  the  existence  in  the  communities  of  a  kernel 
of  morally  mature  Christians  of  fixed  character — is 
now  made  inuch  more  prominent  by  the  fixed 
organisation. 

Insistence  on  fixed  regulations  is  perhaps  the  most ' 
outstanding  feature  of  this  late  period.  We  have 
already  discovered  indications  of  it  in  Clement.  But 
nowhere  do  these  questions  play  such  a  role  as  in 
Ignatius.  Reliance  on  the  free  development  of  the 
Spirit  had  disappeared ;  it  was  sought  to  regulate 
everything.  The  Pastoral  Epistles  and  the  Didache 
supply  very  distinct  evidence  of  that.  Free  utter- 
ances of  the  Spirit  have  become  suspicious  in  their 
doctrinal  aspect.  Teaching  and  speaking,  till  then 
open  to  all,  became  confined  to  the  clergy,  whose 
office  was  entrusted  only  to  reliable  people  and 
afforded  a  guarantee  of  the  right  tradition  of  sound, 
pure    doctrine    (2     Tim.    ii.    2).       In     the    district 


282     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

to  which  the  Pastoral  Epistles  belonged,  the  only 
ministers  of  the  free  Spirit  outside  the  clerical  office 
were  heretics.  A  teacher  like  the  author  of  the 
Epistle  of  Barnabas  may  have  had  an  ecclesiastical 
office,  but  even  in  his  case  we  can  see  how  clearly 
every  effort  after  knowledge  borders  upon  heresy. 
In  other  places  there  were  still  charismatics, 
apostles,  prophets,  and  teachers,  as  the  ancient  trio 
is  still  called  (Did.  xi.  1,  8),  and  where  there  were 
such,  they  enjoyed  the  highest  regard.  To  thein 
belong  all  the  liturgical  functions  without  restriction 
(x.  7).  Only  as  supplement  to  these — so  it  is  still 
maintained  in  theory — do  the  officials  of  the  single 
communities,  bishops  and  deacons,  act  (xv.  1).  They 
receive  the  Church's  alms ;  as  men  of  God  they 
take  precedence  of  the  poor  of  the  community 
(xiii.  4).  It  is  something  of  the  Old  Testament 
priest  idea,  which  is  applied  first  to  the  ministers  of 
the  Spirit  and  then  transferred  from  them  to  the 
clergy. 

But  the  second  and  more  threatening  danger  is 
that  the  early  Christian  prophecy  is  not  only  dog- 
matically but  also  morally  discredited.  The  Churches 
have  learned  by  experience  that  they  were  often 
deceived  by  people  who  pretended  to  speak  in  the 
name  of  God.  An  effort  was  made  to  prevent  their 
being  victimised.  What  makes  the  thing  so  difficult, 
however,  is  that,  on  the  other  hand,  distrust  of  a  real 
prophet  was  held  as  sin  against  the  Holy  Spirit 
(Did.  xi.  7).  The  rule  is  that  the  prophet  must 
possess  the  qualities  of  the  Lord.  This  means  that 
he  must  practise  what  he  teaches  ;  that  he  does  not 
demand   from    the    others    his    own    special   ascetic 


TRANSITION    TO   CATHOLICISM  283 

achievements,  and  above  all  that  he  keeps  himself 
perfectly  self-less.  He  can  perhaps  order  a  meal, 
but  it  must  not  be  for  himself;  he  can  ask  money 
for  the  needy,  but  he  may  himself  accept  no  money, 
not  to  speak  of  asking  for  it  in  the  Spirit  (xi.  8  fF.). 

He  speaks  of  himself  impelled  by  the  Spirit,  but 
not  in  answer  to  demand.  He  bears  witness  and 
rebukes  because  he  cannot  do  otherwise,  but  he  takes 
no  money  for  it  (Herm.  M.  xi.  5  ff.).  From  such 
rules  we  can  learn  the  experiences  which  the  Churches 
had  had  with  their  prophets.  The  earthly  intention, 
i.e.,  covetousness,  is  all  the  more  painful,  when  it  takes 
divine  inspiration  as  its  cloak.  Therefore  the  first 
demand  which  the  Pastoral  Epistles  make  of  Church 
officials  is  that  they  shall  be  free  from  covetousness. 

Under  the  pretence  of  divine  inspiration  human 
vanity  asserted  itself.  This  is  exemplified  in  the 
author  of  the  Epistle  of  Barnabas,  whose  inordinate 
self-consciousness  becomes  only  more  evident  under 
the  phrasy  formulas  of  modesty.  Hence  the  warning 
not  to  force  oneself  to  the  vocation  of  teaching,  in  the 
passage  where  the  great  responsibility  of  this  position 
is  shown.  The  tongue  is  the  member  most  difficult 
to  manage,  and  sins  of  the  tongue  most  dangerous  of 
all.  Spiritual  officiousness  and  gossiping  must  have 
won  the  upper  hand  to  a  great  degree,  especially 
among  the  women  (1  Tim.  v.  13).  The  dispossession 
of  the  Spirit-effiscted  teaching  by  the  church  office, 
strikes  us  at  first  as  a  limitation  and  a  moral  retro- 
gression. A^'^hen  we  reflect,  however,  that  the  matter 
is  much  more  one  of  the  rejection  of  self-chosen 
teachers  who  had  no  inward  divine  calling,  we  shall 
come  to  a  diffisrent  estimate  of  it.     If  the  Spirit  was 


284     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

no  longer  there,  or  no  longer  powerful  and  morally 
without  reproach,  then  better  a  ministry  which  was 
regulated,  controlled  and  responsible. 

The  office,  too,  brings  new  dangers.  Its  introduc- 
tion was  not  effected  without  conflicts  which  often 
severely  threatened  the  peace  of  the  Churches. 
Charismatics,  real  or  false,  do  not  let  themselves 
be  easily  repressed.  On  the  other  hand  ambition, 
which  can  no  longer  shine  in  the  mantle  of  the 
prophet,  transforms  itself  into  spiritual  place-hunting. 
Love  of  domination  is  developed,  and  new  doors 
are  opened  to  covetousness.  The  management  of  the 
church  treasury  and  the  funds  for  widows  and  orphans 
is  a  temptation  to  dishonesty.  There  were  actual 
cases  where  the  temptation  was  given  way  to.  We 
possess  proofs  of  it.  But  we  shall  not  fail  to  remark 
that  they  were  isolated  cases,  which  were  at  once 
clearly  branded.  All  sorts  of  precautions  were 
adopted  against  them,  and  if  any  attention  was 
given  to  these  precautions  in  the  election  of  church 
officials,  a  clergy  was  bound  to  be  formed  which 
would  conduce  to  the  ornamentation  of  the  Christian 
Church  and  the  honour  of  Christianity.  And  what 
we  know  of  men  like  Ignatius,  Polycarp,  and  others 
fully  confirms  this  expectation. 

It  is  required  of  one  who  is  to  be  a  bishop  that  he 
be  blameless,  the  husband  of  one  wife,  sober,  intelligent, 
honest,  hospitable,  apt  to  teach,  not  given  to  wine, 
not  quarrelsome,  but  mild,  not  contentious,  no  lover 
of  money,  one  that  ruleth  well  his  own  house,  having 
his  children  in  subjection,  not  a  novice,  having  good 
testimony  of  them  that  are  without  (1  Tim.  iii.  1  ff., 
Tit.  i.  5  ffi).     The  appointment  of  a  deacon  is  preceded 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  285 

by  a  probation,  in  order  to  test  whether  he  is  blameless, 
honest,  not  double-tongued,  not  given  to  much  wine, 
not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre.  Only  in  the  event  of 
proper  fulfilling  of  the  office  of  deacon  is  promotion 
to  a  higher  office  promised  (1  Tim.  iii.  8  ff.). 

Now  and  then  there  are  dispositions  towards  the 
later  Catholic  view  which  elevates  the  clergy  out  of 
the  Church  entirely  and  places  it  over  the  same.  The 
man  consecrated  by  the  laying-on  of  hands  possesses 
thereby  an  authority  which  is  not  at  all  affiscted  by 
some  degree  of  youth  (1  Tim.  iv.  12,  Tit.  ii.  15).  A 
salary  in  the  case  of  officials  is  a  matter  of  course 
(1  Tim.  V.  17),  but  the  ascetic  ground  for  it  that  they 
might  not  become  entangled  in  concern  for  their 
maintenance  is  to  be  noted  (2  Tim.  ii.  3-7).  That 
the  bishop  was  allowed  only  one  marriage,  while  in 
the  case  of  other  Christians  a  second  marriage  was 
permitted,  is  a  first  step  on  the  way  to  celibacy, 
to  the  higher  morality  of  the  priesthood.  That 
complaints  against  presbyters  were  made  difficult, 
(1  Tim.  V.  19)  moves  in  the  direction  of  exemp- 
tion of  the  clergy  from  secular  courts.  But  still 
these  things  are  only  tendencies  which  are  morally 
motivated  through  and  through.  Perfect  inoffisnsive- 
ness,  protection  against  thoughtless  calumny,  are  a 
necessity  to  the  man  who,  as  the  most  prominent 
member  of  the  Church,  occupies  a  conspicuous  posi- 
tion. And  yet  these  men  are  really  members  of  the 
Church ;  the  Church  elects  them  out  of  her  midst 
(Did.  XV.  1).  The  leading  idea  still  is  that  they  are 
to  be  guides  of  the  Church  in  morals  also,  the  same 
luminous  patterns  which  the  apostles  once  were 
(1  Tim.  iv.  12,  2  Tim.  iii.  10,  Tit.  ii.  7,  2  Clem.  xix.  1). 


S86     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG  THE   HEATHEN 

The  Church  itself,  however,  no  longer  bears  the 
simple  family  character.  Its  larger  compass  made 
a  classification  necessary.  So  a  separation  is  made 
among  its  members  according  to  age  and  sex :  old 
men  and  old  women,  young  men  and  young  women. 
They  remain  apart  at  service,  they  have  each  their 
particular  tasks,  and  also  their  particular  honours. 
The  clergy  receives  instruction  how  to  behave  to- 
wards each  separate  class :  "  Rebuke  not  an  elder, 
but  exhort  him  as  a  father ;  the  younger  men  as 
brethren :  the  elder  women  as  mothers,  the  younger 
as  sisters  in  all  purity"  (1  Tim.  v.  1  f.). 

This  whole  classification  of  the  communities  was 
of  high  moral  significance  not  only  as  the  expression 
of  order.  It  avoided  the  actualising  of  what  the 
heathen  said  of  the  Christians,  and  what  is  so  often 
said  in  the  case  of  exclusive  societies,  viz.,  that  their 
coming  together  in  intimate  intercourse  of  the  sexes 
served  for  debauch ;  it  cut  the  ground  from  under 
calumny. 

But  in  another  sense  the  family  character  was  still 
actually  there,  as  expressed  in  the  terms  brothers  and 
sisters,  fathers  and  mothers  ;  the  whole  Church  shared 
the  fate  of  the  individual  member.  We  shall  still 
have  to  speak  of  how  assistance  was  given  when 
one  fell  into  any  sort  of  necessitous  circumstances. 
AVhen  he  was  sick  he  received  visits  from  the 
presbyters  as  representatives  of  the  Church  (Jas. 
V.  14).  In  family  events  like  births  and  deaths, 
the  whole  Church  participated  with  intercession  and 
thanksgiving,  as  we  learn  from  the  Apology  of  Aris- 
tides.  Burials  were  carried  out.  The  individvial  did 
not  stand  alone ;   he  belonged  to  a  large   and   wide 


TRANSITION  TO   CATHOLICISM  287 

family.  He  enjoyed  great  advantages  from  it.  But 
he  must  comply  with  its  regulations. 

A  similar  state  of  matters  prevailed  in  worship. 
Here,  too,  there  were  everywhere  more  fixed  organisa- 
tion and  regulation  in  detail.  Attention  was  paid  to 
costume  and  deportment  (1  Tim.  ii.  8  f).  In  this 
matter  custom  is  powerful.  The  words  of  the 
prayers  were  fixed,  at  least  for  men  who  were  not 
gifted  by  the  Spirit.  A  definite  leader  in  prayer 
not  particularly  powerful  in  the  Spirit  would 
gradually  form  a  somewhat  fixed  type  of  prayer. 
Thus  we  have  seen  that  the  great  prayer  of  the  first 
Epistle  of  Clement  grew  out  of  the  devotional  exercises 
in  the  Roman  divine  service.  This  mechanical  regu- 
lation takes  a  further  step  when,  after  the  pattern  of 
the  Jewish  hours  of  prayer,  the  repetition  of  the 
Lord's  Prayer  is  demanded  three  times  daily  (Did. 
viii.  8).  Here  the  moral  grounds  of  all  real  prayer, 
perfect  acquiescence  and  truth,  must  suffer.  The 
habit  of  regular  prayer  has  much  educational  value, 
but  conceals  great  dangers.  Fasting,  too,  is  exter- 
nalised to  a  custom  which  is  to  some  extent  valued 
as  an  especial  service  {cf.  2  Clem.  xvi.  4) ;  this  is 
especially  noticeable  in  the  regulation  that  once  more, 
in  dependence  on  Jewish  usage,  two  days  in  the  week 
shall  be  set  apart  as  special  fast  days  (Did.  viii.  1). 

Here  we  get  the  impression  that  Christianity  has 
indeed  become  a  spoil  of  the  Judaism  so  warmly 
combated  by  Ignatius,  not  in  the  sense  of  the  increase 
of  a  Jewish  Christian  current,  but  by  the  simple 
adoption  of  the  Jewish  method,  with  trifling  outward 
alterations  which  do  not  alter  the  spirit  of  the  matter. 
The  whole  divine  service  comes  more  and  more  under 


288     CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

the  Old  Testament  sacrificial  point  of  view.  This 
involves  not  only  the  idea  of  the  priesthood,  but, 
above  all,  the  conception  of  particular  services  and 
the  power  to  influence  God  or  make  an  impression 
on  Him  thereby.  That  is  true  also  of  the  bringing 
of  gifts  for  the  supper  and  for  the  poor,  and  of  the 
sacrifice  of  prayer  and  song. 

Nevertheless,  the  ground  principle  that  Christian 
worship  is  something  spiritual  and  moral  is  still 
maintained.  The  Epistle  of  Barnabas  sees  something 
pagan  (xvi.  2)  in  the  Jewish  localising  of  divine  service 
at  the  Temple  in  Jerusalem.  The  idea  of  offering  is 
spiritualised  as  much  as  possible  to  the  thought  of  a 
sacrifice  of  praise  from  the  lips.  The  priesthood 
appears  in  the  main  as  the  pattern  of  order.  In 
baptism  the  important  thing  is  the  painful  perform- 
ance of  every  sort  of  external  form ;  yet  a  certain 
measure  of  freedom  is  preserved  (Did.  vii.).  The 
Lord's  Supper — at  least  in  the  circle  of  the  Didache — 
is  celebrated  in  the  sentiment  of  joyful  thanksgiving 
for  God's  rich  bodily  and  spiritual  blessings,  not  as  the 
awful  mystery  of  the  later  period.  Sunday  is  a  day 
of  joy,  kept  in  remembrance  of  Christ's  resurrection 
and  ascension  (Barn.  xv.  9,  Did.  xiv.  1).  In  general, 
amid  all  the  feeling  of  sin  and  guilt,  the  thought 
of  praise  and  thanksgiving  is  supreme  (Barn.  vii.  1, 
xix.  2).  A  thanksgiving  prayer  sanctifies  every  meal- 
time (1  Tim.  iv.  3  fF.).  Thankfulness  for  God's  rich 
benevolence  is  the  leading  motive  of  all  moral  deahng 
(2  Clem.  i.).  Fasting  is  regarded  as  a  very  whole- 
some exercise,  but  the  prophetic  view  is  clung  to, 
that  the  right  fasting  is  the  exercise  of  righteousness 
and  brotherly  love  (Barn.  iii.).     Confession  is,  above 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  289 

all,  a  confession  of  deed,  the  performance  of  the  Lord's 
commands  (2  Clem.  iii.  4,  iv.  3).  It  is  important  to 
note,  however,  that  there  is  still  a  feeling  for  the 
principle  that  the  moral  duties  are  higher  than  the 
ceremonial  (Mark  vii.  11  fF.).  "Pm'e  religion  and 
undefiled  before  our  God  and  Father  is  this,  to  visit 
the  fatherless  and  widov^s  in  their  affliction :  and  to 
keep  himself  unspotted  from  the  world  "  (Jas.  i.  27). 

The  passage  in  Ps.  li.  19  is  repeated  impressively: 
"  A  sacrifice  for  God  is  a  broken  heart ;  a  sweet 
savour  for  the  Lord  is  a  heart  that  praises  its  Maker  " 
(Barn.  ii.  10).  The  Lord's  teaching  that  reconcilia- 
tion is  more  urgent  than  sacrifice  is  still  taken 
seriously  (Matt.  v.  23  f.) ;  only  holy  hands  without 
wrath  and  disputing  shall  be  raised  to  God  (1  Tim. 
ii.  8).  He  who  has  a  dispute  with  his  brother  may 
not  take  part  in  the  Lord's  Supper  unless  previously 
reconciled.  So  before  the  beginning  of  the  meal 
a  general  confession  of  sin  shall  take  place  (Did.  xiv. 
1  f ).  Confession  of  sin  and  intercession  as  reciprocal 
brotherly  duty  are  usually  strongly  emphasised 
(Jas.  V.  16).  This,  too,  when  practised  in  a  merely 
external  way  becomes  impure,  but,  in  the  family 
character  of  the  smaller  Churches  especially,  the 
exercise  had  without  doubt  a  promoting  and 
strengthening  effect  on  the  moral  consciousness  and 
steadfastness  of  individuals. 

The  Churches  still  form  a  communion  answerable 

for    the   moral   behaviour    of  every    member.     Onei 

member  is  to  call  the  other  to  account  and  rebuke 

him,  not  in  anger  but  in  peace.     One  who  does  his 

brother   an   injustice  is  not  to  speak  in  the   church 

(Did.  XV.  3).     He  who  brings  his  erring  brother  back 

19 


290     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

to  the  right  way  has  done  a  good  work  (Jas.  v.  19  f., 
2  Clem.  XV.  1).  Even  where  Church  disciphne  is 
looked  upon  chiefly  as  the  duty  of  the  clergy,  the 
same  thing  holds  good.  Public  correction  of  sinners 
serves  for  the  instruction  of  all  (1  Tim.  v.  20).  The 
preservation  of  a  member  from  moral  ruin  is  more 
important  than  the  conversion  of  an  unbeliever 
(2  Clem.  xvii.  1).  Along  with  preaching  of  the  word 
we  have  rebuking,  threatening,  exhorting,  though 
with  all  patience  and  instruction,  mentioned  as  among 
the  chief  tasks  (2  Tim.  iv.  2,  ii.  24  f.).  In  certain 
circumstances  severity  is  necessary  (Tit.  i.  18),  but  re- 
gard must  be  had  for  age  and  worth,  while  partiality 
is  to  be  guarded  against  (1  Tim.  v.  1,  21).  The 
teachers,  too,  followed  these  directions,  as  is  shown  by 
works  like  the  Epistle  of  James,  the  so-called  second 
Epistle  of  Clement  and  the  Shepherd  of  Hermas, 
whose  leading  tone  is  that  of  a  scolding  sermon  to 
the  Christian  Churches.  Indeed,  in  opposition  to 
the  claims  advanced  by  single  sects  to  represent  a 
community  of  perfect  saints  on  earth,  the  view  that 
the  Church  is  an  institution,  which  must  include  both 
good  and  evil,  becomes  more  and  more  common  in 
Catholic  circles  (2  Tim.  ii.  20).  But,  on  the  other 
hand,  even  then  the  Church  is  spoken  of  in  the  highest 
strain  as  the  house  of  God,  in  order  to  impress  upon 
the  leaders  the  need  for  blameless  conduct  (1  Tim. 
iii.  15),  and  Christianity  itself  appears  as  a  great 
divine  pedagogy,  teaching  that,  denying  ungodliness, 
and  worldly  lusts,  they  should  live  soberly,  righteously, 
and  godly  in  this  present  world  (Tit.  ii.  11  f.). 

Outwardly  Christianity  is  still  perfectly  aware  of 
her   missionary   duty.     It   is   from   this   period  that 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  291 

we  learn  properly  and  accurately  about  the  extent 
of  missionary  endeavour.  Everywhere  there  are 
apostles  whose  task  is  to  speak  to  non-Christians.  If 
these  come  to  a  place  where  an  organised  Church 
already  exists,  they  may  only  make  a  short  stay  there. 
Their  calling  drives  them  further.  For  here  in  the 
place  the  Church  itself  does  mission- work ;  its 
assemblies  stand  open  to  all.  (Only  to  the  Lord's 
Supper  are  non-baptized  denied  admission,  Did. 
ix.  5.)  All  who  come  are  bid  kindly  welcome.  As 
in  the  time  of  Paul  in  Corinth,  the  Spirit  of  God 
as  revealed  in  the  Church  still  manifests  itself,  espe- 
cially in  the  retributive  detection  of  what  is  hid  in 
the  inmost  heart  of  man  (Herm.  M.  xi.  14,  Ign. 
Philad.  vii.). 

But  now  a  change  of  character,  a  worldly  spirit, 
is  revealed  in  the  different  receptions  accorded 
to  strangers,  of  which  James  ii.  1  fF.  complains. 
Christians  put  themselves  about  for  a  well-dressed 
and  rich  man,  and  show  him  extraordinary  politeness, 
but  a  poor  man  in  his  dusty  smock  is  left  unnoticed. 
We  shall  afterwards  deal  with  the  causes  of  this 
worldly  spirit.  Here  we  must  rather  emphasise  that 
the  universalism  of  God's  saving  intention  was  always 
vividly  maintained  in  the  general  intercession  (1  Tim. 
ii.  1-4,  Ign.  Eph.  x.  1) ;  and  the  immediate  result  of 
this  was  the  universal  missionary  obligation  of  the 
Church. 

Again,  there  was  the  duty  of  confession.  For  how 
can  adherents  be  won  to  a  cause  by  any  one  who 
is  not  himself  absolutely  devoted  to  it  ?  So  far  as 
this  is  concerned,  things  seem  to  be  better  than  in 
the   period   immediately   after   Paul.     There   is   not 


292     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

so  much  complaint  about  apostasy  and  forsaking  of 
the  assembhes.  But  appearances  are  deceptive.  The 
vigour  with  which  the  necessity  of  fearless  confession 
is  emphasised  (2  Tim.  i.  8,  ii.  3)  is  to  be  explained 
not  only  by  the  opposition  to  a  gnosticism  which 
fights  shy  of  confession.  The  apostle  who  was  not 
ashamed  of  his  bonds  appeared  to  his  successors  as  a 
pattern  that  put  them  to  shame  (2  Tim.  i.  12, 
ii.  9  fF.,  iv.  6  fF.).  In  Timothy  a  fearfulness  is  com- 
bated which  is  evidently  widespread  (2  Tim.  i.  6  ff.). 
The  prospect  of  a  glorious  reward  in  the  future  must 
instil  new  courage  (2  Tim.  ii.  11,  2  Clem,  xix.,  xx.). 
As  a  matter  of  fact  the  Christians  see  themselves 
continually  threatened  by  persecutions. 

They  had  to  make  it  clear  to  themselves  that  these 
should  serve  only  to  preserve  faith  and  work  patience 
( Jas.  i.  2  fF. ) ;  loss  through  the  confiscation  of  property 
only  signifies  progress  in  the  religious  inner  life  (i.  10), 
and  martyrdom  always  leads  to  eternal  and  glorious 
life  (i.  12).  The  example  of  no  less  a  man  than  the 
Apostle  Paul  shows  that  "  all  that  would  live  godly 
in  Christ  Jesus  shall  suffer  persecution "  (2  Tim. 
iii.  10  fF.).  "Those  who  wish  to  behold  me,  and  lay 
hold  of  my  kingdom,  must  through  tribulation  and 
suffering  obtain  me"  (Barn.  vii.   11). 

In  spite,  however,  of  the  hostility  of  the  heathen 
powers  as  revealed  in  these  persecutions,  loyalty 
towards  the  magistrate  appointed  by  God  remains 
unshaken  (Tit.  iii.  1).  It  finds  its  expression  in  prayer 
and  intercession  (1  Tim.  ii.  2).  I  do  not  see  in  this 
exhortation  any  proof  of  the  presence  of  a  contrary 
tendency.  True  there  exists  no  close  connection 
with  the  state.     Little  interest  was  felt  in  it.     Except 


TRANSITION  TO   CATHOLICISM  293 

in  one  passage  it  is  never  mentioned.  But  on  the 
one  hand,  the  strong  anti-Jewish  feeUng  presupposes 
a  positive  regard  for  the  Roman  imperial  power. 
Barnabas  cordially  acquiesces  in  Hadrian's  action 
towards  the  Jews  (xvi.  4).  On  the  other  hand  the 
eschatology  peculiar  to  them  allows  the  political 
features  of  the  earlier  Jewish  revelation  to  be  more 
and  more  lost  sight  of  (Did.  xvi.).  To  be  sure  there 
were  instances  where  a  Christian  on  trial  broke  out 
in  sharp  aggressive  words  against  heathendom  and 
the  heathen  state.  But  so  bad  as  Hausrath  makes  it, 
the  speech  of  Christian  apologists  and  martyrs  was 
not.  On  the  contrary,  the  fact  that  the  good  con- 
fession which  Jesus  Christ  witnessed  before  Pontius 
Pilate  was  always  kept  in  view  (1  Tim.  vi.  13),  and 
that  the  long-suffering  and  patience  of  a  Paul  in  his 
frequent  sufferings  and  persecutions  were  pointed  to 
as  a  pattern  (2  Tim.  iii.  10  ff.)  shows  how  differently 
the  proper  behaviour  of  a  Christian  martyr  was  con- 
ceived. The  provocation  and  abuse  which  a  much 
later  time  considered  it  edifying  to  put  in  the  mouth 
of  martyrs  only  throws  the  more  brilliant  light  on  the 
moral  earnestness  of  the  martyrs  of  the  older  period. 

Much  rather  could  the  attitude  to  Judaism  be  re- 
proached as  un-Christian.  It  is  unjust  to  call  Jewish 
custom,  as  such,  hypocrisy  (Did.  viii.  1  f ),  to  de- 
nounce the  Jewish  verbal  comprehension  of  the  Old 
Testament  as  sin  (Barn.  ii.  9,  ix.  4,  x.  9,  xvi.  1),  and  to 
make  the  one  apostasy  at  Sinai  an  everlasting  reproach 
against  the  people  of  Israel  (Barn.  iv.  8,  xiv.  1,  4). 
The  great  delight  which  Barnabas  takes  in  the  re- 
compensing of  the  Jews  (xvi.  4),  is  far  from  kind. 
But  we  are  not  to  forget  that  this  unkind  attitude 


294     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG  THE   HEATHEN 

was  caused  by  the  Jews  themselves,  who,  in  their 
hatred  of  Christians,  kindled  and  revived  persecution 
everywhere,  and  probably  even  won  over  weak  Chris- 
tians through  the  seductive  prospect  of  a  recognised 
and  free  exercise  of  religion.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  was  an  expression  of  Christian  self-consciousness. 
iWith  conscious  renunciation  of  the  advantages  en- 
joyed by  the  synagogue,  Christians  wished  to  stand 
on  their  own  feet,  and  even  if  suffering  should  be 
involved,  to  bear  it  for  the  name  of  Christ.  Lastly, 
this  attitude  appeared  warranted  and  even  commanded 
through  words  of  holy  writ,  in  which  God  rejected 
the  Jews  and  legitimised  the  Christians  and  their 
comprehension  of  the  Old  Testament.  We  cannot 
here  compare  Paul's  utterances  of  warm  self-sacrificing 
love  towards  his  blinded  people  (Rom.  ix.  1  ff.),  but 
the  fanatic  hatred  of  Jews  which  was  characteristic 
of  the  Gneco-Roman  world  of  the  time,  especially 
in  Alexandria.  Placed  alongside  of  this,  the  anti- 
Judaism  of  a  Barnabas  appears  harmless  and  even 
reasonable. 

We  might  here  point  out  in  a  word  that  Christian 
generosity  was  extended  even  to  those  outside  the 
Christian  community.  The  Pauline  maxim,  to  do 
good  to  every  man,  though  most  of  all  to  the  brethren 
of  the  faith,  is  strictly  observed  :  "  Give  without  ask- 
ing to  whom  thou  givest"  (Herm.  M.  ii.  4,  6).  And, 
finally,  such  proper  regard  was  had  to  the  judgment 
of  those  outside,  that  every  effort  was  made  to  be 
inoffensive  and  to  contradict  all  calumnies  by  ocular 
demonstration  (1  Tim.  iii.  7,  Tit.  iii.  2).  A  Chris- 
tian preacher  expresses  exactly  what  obligations  the 
possession  of  an  admittedly  lofty  and  pure  doctrine 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  295 

of  morality  lays  upon  the  Christians.  "  When  the 
heathen  hear  the  word  of  God  out  of  your  mouth, 
they  admire  it  as  beautiful  and  great.  But  they 
note  that  our  works  do  not  correspond  with  the 
words  we  speak,  and  so  get  occasion  for  slander, 
calling  it  tales  and  lies.  When  they  hear  from  us 
that  God  says,  '  It  brings  you  no  grace  to  love  those 
who  love  you,  but  it  brings  grace  when  you  love 
enemies  and  those  who  hate  you,'  they  admire,  on 
hearing  it,  the  excess  of  goodness.  But  they  see 
that  we  not  only  do  not  love  the  enemy,  but  not  even 
the  friend,  so  they  laugh  at  us,  and  the  name  is 
slandered"  (2  Clem.  xiii.  3  f.).  Thus  Christianity  is 
fully  conscious  that  it  is  not  only  to  glory  in  the  com- 
mands of  its  Lord,  but  that  it  must  also  realise  them. 
The  Christian  self-consciousness  reveals  itself  still 
more  clearly  in  the  relations  of  the  Christians  to  one  \ 
another.  The  great  communion,  the  Church,  the 
Ecclesia,  is  clearly  there.  Prayer  is  offered  for  its 
unity,  that  in  the  end  it  may  be  visible.  Already, 
however,  it  is  spiritually  present,  mediated  through 
those  wandering  apostles,  prophets,  and  teachers. 
The  Didache  gives  the  impression  of  the  existence 
of  very  many  itinerant  brethren,  who  kept  up 
comunications  between  community  and  community. 
More  and  more  also  there  is  formed  an  outward 
conformity  in  constitution,  ceremonial,  and  custom. 
The  ordinances  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles,  e.g.,  are 
certainly  given  for  a  larger  circle  of  Churches  (Tit.  i. 
5) ;  and  the  "  Teaching  of  the  Apostles  "  applies  to 
the  Church  in  a  whole  district.  When  we  compare 
these  two,  the  fundamental  features,  in  spite  of  all 
varieties  of  local  development,  are  the  same. 


296     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

Within  the  separate  Churches,  however,  the  Chris- 
tian consciousness  is  no  less  Uvely.  When  individuals 
withdraw  {iJ.ova(eiv)  from  fear  of  suffering  or  in  haughty 
self-exaltation,  "  as  if  they  were  already  justified," 
they  are  severely  reproached  (Barn.  iv.  10).  The 
value  of  union  is  understood  ;  only  as  a  member  of 
the  community  does  one  come  to  fuller  knowledge 
of  the  will  of  God,  and  find  the  strength  to  really 
keep  His  commands  (Barn.  x.  11).  The  exhortation 
to  seek  the  face  of  the  saints  daily,  to  gain  life  from 
their  words  (Did.  iv.  2,  Barn.  xix.  10),  may  be  taken 
over  from  Judaism,  but  here  it  won  new  significance 
and  was  inculcated  afresh  (Did.  xvi.  2).  The  advice 
points  to  existing  carelessness,  which,  however,  would 
be  confined  to  a  section  of  the  Church.  AVe  have 
already  become  acquainted  with  the  gatherings  for 
divine  service  as  the  essential  means  for  promoting 
and  fixing  Christian  morals.  Here  the  matter  is 
one  evidently  of  assemblies  of  a  more  private  kind, 
wholly  for  mutual  edification  and  education. 

The  finest  achievement  of  the  Churches  is  their 
organisation  of  Christian  charity.  Formerly  this  was 
purely  voluntary,  but  now,  with  the  consolidation 
of  the  constitution,  it  became  a  Church  affair — at 
least  in  great  measure.  Individuals,  however,  still 
enjoyed  sufficient  opportunity  of  freely  exercising 
their  desire  to  give.  Such  organising,  morally 
estimated,  may  be  a  doubtful  advance.  AVhen  we 
look  at  it  in  general,  however,  it  is  a  brilliant  proof  of 
the  strong  moral  spirit  which  lived  in  the  Churches. 
Through  a  system  of  giving,  which  does  not  appear 
to  have  been  strictly  regulated,  and  which  left  the 
individual  room  for  free  play,  the  Church  was  made 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  297 

capable  of  meeting  the  largest  demands,  while  also 
very  sensible  measures  were  adopted  against  its  being 
taken  advantage  of.     According  to  the  Didache,  the 
members  of  the   Churches   in   the  country  have  to 
deliver   the    first-fruits    of   the    wine-press    and    the 
threshing-floor,  the  fii'stlings  of  the  oxen  and  sheep, 
the  first  of  the  dough-cakes,  and  the  first  of  a  wine 
or  oil  cask,  as  also  of  money,  garments,  and  other 
possessions ;    the    regulation    reads    expressly,    "  the 
first  portion  according  to  thy  judgment "  (Did.  xiii.  7). 
These  offerings  are  employed  primarily  for  the  mainten- 
ance of  those  who  serve  the  community,  and  especially 
on  behalf  of  those  itinerant  teachers  who  are  entirely 
dependent  upon  it ;    then   come  the  officials  of  the 
individual  Churches,  who,  indeed,  in  large  congrega- 
tions might  give  all  their  time  to  the  work  and  be 
dependent  upon  it  for  their  livelihood,  but  in  smaller 
Churches  certainly  had  their  own  business  and  property 
besides.     At  the  outset,   however,  it  is  stated  that 
enough  is  to  be  retained  to  tend  the  poor  of  the 
Church,  to  provide  journeying  brethren  with  two  or 
three  days'    support,  and   to    carry  out   any  similar 
obligations  of  love  towards  prisoners,  sick,  and  needy 
that  might  arise.     In  particular  there  is  a  class  in  the 
Church  for  whom  it  is  bound  to  provide.     This  class 
is  composed  of  the  widows,  who,  on  their  side,  serve 
the    Church   in    various   ways,    teaching   the    youth, 
bringing  up  orphans,  and  nursing  the  sick,  etc.     In 
this  case  the  feeling  of  a  special  obligation  to  protect 
the  widow,  who  is  deprived  of  her  proper  maintenance 
and  protection,  and  the  special  arrangements  for  the 
maintenance  of  the  clergy,  go  hand  in  hand.     Further, 
every  newcomer  who  bears  the   Lord's  name  has  a 


298    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

right  to  look  for  shelter  and  food,  and,  in  case  of 
his  journeying  further,  can  claim  a  provision  for  the 
way.  If  a  Christian  is  thrown  into  prison  for  the 
Lord's  name,  the  Church  maintains  him,  and,  if 
possible,  purchases  his  freedom.  This  concern  of 
the  Church  extended  even  to  other  Churches,  to 
companions  of  the  faith  deported  to  penal  servitude 
in  the  mines. 

An  organisation  of  this  kind  dies  of  itself  when  it 
is  shackled  by  the  spirit  of  a  blind  enthusiasm.  This 
reproach  was  made  against  the  Christians.  Lucian 
sneers  at  the  touching  concern  which  the  swindler 
Peregrinus  Proteus,  who  obtruded  himself  among 
them  for  some  time,  secured  for  himself  as  minister 
and  martyr.  It  may  have  been  so  in  single  instances. 
The  passionate  willingness  of  the  Christians  tempted 
the  unscrupulous  to  take  advantage  of  them.  On 
the  whole  we  must  acknowledge  with  wonder  that 
they  did  not  fall  into  this  mistake.  The  individual 
was  asked  for  absolute  readiness  to  assist ;  yet  as  a 
Church  institution  Christian  benevolence  was  always 
exercised  in  that  sober,  thoughtful  spirit  which,  with 
clear  vision  surveys  the  means  at  hand,  adopts  what 
is  practicable,  and  helps  only  where  there  is  actual 
need.  We  possess  evidence  of  this  in  the  views 
expressed  in  the  Pastoral  Epistles  on  the  care  of 
widows,  and  in  those  of  the  Didache  on  the  treat- 
ment of  wandering  brethren.  If  a  widow  has  children 
and  grandchildren,  it  is  their  business  to  care  for  her, 
and  to  give  expression  to  the  love  and  gratitude  of 
children.  Should  it  happen  that  a  inember  of  the 
Church  has  voluntarily  accepted  the  care  of  some 
widows,  then  these  are  to  be  entirely  given  over  to 


TRANSITION  TO   CATHOLICISM  299 

him,  and  no  longer  to  take  part  in  the  provision  made 
by  the  Church,  in  order  that  the  Church  may  not 
be  unnecessarily  burdened.  Further,  if  a  Christian 
comes  to  a  Church  in  his  journeying,  rest  and  a 
meal  are  to  be  provided  first  of  all.  Then  he  is  to 
be  tested.  Here  we  shall  have  to  think  of  the  letters 
of  commendation  which  at  that  time  were  probably 
regularly  given  from  the  home-Church.  If  he  is  only 
on  his  way  through,  he  is  to  receive  what  further 
help  is  possible,  and,  in  case  of  need,  to  be  accommo- 
dated with  quarters  and  maintenance  for  two  or  three 
days,  but  no  longer  !  If  he  wishes  to  make  a  longer 
stay,  he  is  to  earn  his  bread  himself ;  even  here,  how- 
ever, the  Church  is  to  assist  him  by  securing  some 
work  for  him  to  do.  In  the  case  of  an  artisan,  that 
is  evidently  not  difhcult ;  in  other  cases  it  is  entrusted 
to  the  prudence  of  the  Church  to  look  out  for  a 
suitable  occupation,  to  the  end  that  in  the  Church  no 
Christian  live  a  lazy  life  (Did.  xii.  4) — an  exceedingly 
instructive  parallel  to  the  modern  combating  of  vaga- 
bondism. He  who  declines  to  labour  is  to  be  con- 
sidered a  deceiver  travelling  in  the  name  of  Christ,  and 
to  be  expelled.  When  we  add  to  this  that  slaves 
were  denied  any  claim  upon  church  funds  for  their 
emancipation,  unless  there  seemed  to  be  special 
circumstances  demanding  it,  we  see  that  the  Christian 
Churches  were  by  no  means  blind  in  their  manage- 
ment. These  regulations,  too,  have  another  value 
than  simply  that  of  a  protection  against  being 
victimised  by  false  brethren  or  against  mismanage- 
ment by  over-zealous  officials.  They  show  also  what 
attention  was  paid  in  the  Churches  to  the  virtues  of 
affection    towards    parents    and    dependents,  joy   in 


300     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

labour  and  industry,  modesty  and  contentment  with 
one's  position.  The  high  valuation  of  the  love  of 
children,  of  labour,  and  of  service  shows  genuine 
evangelical  features  which  richly  atone  for  any 
ascetic  grounds  that  reveal  themselves,  and  anything 
impersonal  which  accompanies  the  organisation. 

It  is,  however,  extremely  important  to  observe 
that  organised  liberality  does  not  make  private 
charity  superfluous,  does  not  anticipate  it ;  on  the 
contrary,  it  leaves  as  much  as  possible  to  individual 
liberality.  Devoted  and  loving  toil  for  all  in  need  is 
still  considered  one  of  the  chief  proofs  of  personal 
Christianity.  Among  the  qualities  which  a  member 
of  the  Church  to  be  chosen  as  bishop  must  uncon- 
ditionally possess,  hospitality  is  named  (1  Tim.  iii.  2, 
Tit.  i.  8).  This  is  to  be  explained  not  by  the  fact 
that  in  the  future  he  will  have  to  exercise  hospitality 
in  name  of  the  Church,  but  because  hospitality  is  the 
sign  of  a  living  Christian,  and  only  such  are  to  be 
chosen  to  preside  over  the  Church.  The  same  applies 
to  the  widows,  who  are  to  be  cared  for  by  the  Church. 
It  is  presupposed  that,  in  addition  to  works  of 
benevolence,  training  children  and  hospitality,  they 
have  willingly  rendered  the  lesser  services  of  love 
like  foot-washing,  have  received  the  oppressed  and  in 
general  done  all  possible  good.  It  cannot  be  denied 
that  the  unfruitfulness  of  intellectualism  in  works  of 
Christian  love,  which  we  already  found  among  the 
gnostics,  is  revealed  also  in  Church  circles. 

People  who  rest  content  with  an  appeal  to  the 
Pauline  formula,  i.e.,  with  a  theoretical  acknowledg- 
ment of  faith,  are  reminded  by  Jas.  ii.  14  fF.  that  faith 
without  works  is  dead,   that   true   heavenly  wisdom 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  301 

must  reveal  itself  among  other  things  in  abundant 
mercy  and  good  works  (iii.  17).  With  an  insistence 
similar  to  that  in  1  John  iii.  17,  and  in  the  Gospel  of 
the  Hebrews  {vide  p.  169),  the  heartlessness  of  mere 
words  is  pilloried  (ii.  15  f ).  "  If  a  brother  or  a  sister 
be  naked,  destitute  of  daily  food,  and  one  of  you  say 
unto  them,  Depart  in  peace,  be  ye  warmed  and  filled, 
notwithstanding  ye  give  them  not  those  things  which 
are  needful  to  the  body,  what  doth  it  profit  ?  "  In  this 
connection  the  emphatic  demand  for  practical,  applied 
Christianity,  which  so  distinctly  characterises  this 
whole  conception  of  Christianity,  is  recognised  (Tit. 
iii.  8).  Christianity  must  bring  forth  fruit.  The 
highest  boast  of  a  Christian  is  that  he  has  served 
(2  Tim.  i.  18).  Faith  and  love  are  the  determining 
signs  of  a  Christian  (1  Tim  i.  15)  and  of  a  Christian 
Church.  The  author  of  the  Epistle  of  Barnabas  bears 
witness  to  his  readers  that  they  possess  these  richly 
(i.  4,  xi.  8).  Along  with  the  hope  of  eternal  life,  with 
which  faith  begins  and  ends,  along  with  the  righteous- 
ness which  is  more  than  judgment,  there  is  a  bold, 
joyous  love  which  is  evidenced  in  works  of  righteous- 
ness, the  third  of  the  main  commandments  of  the 
Lord  (Barn.  i.  6).  It  is  not  enough,  as  might  be  the 
custom  of  many  Christians,  to  hear  the  Word  ofi 
God;  it  must  also  be  done  (Jas.  i.  22).  The  insuffi- 
ciency of  the  Greek  view  that  knowledge  is  the  one 
important  thing,  even  in  the  moral  sphere,  is  clearly 
recognised,  and  stern  tones  are  employed  against  it : 
"  To  him  that  knoweth  to  do  good  and  doeth  it  not, 
to  him  it  is  sin."  The  oldest  Christian  sermon 
contains  the  warning  to  take  home  something  from 
the  assembly,  and  amid  the  seductions  of  the  world 


302     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

not  to  forget  the  Lord's  commands  (2  Clem.  xvii.  3). 
Among  the  commands  which  are  most  expressly 
inculcated  is  that  of  giving,  and,  moreover,  joyous 
giving,  which  finds  its  pattern  in  God's  manner  of 
giving  to  all  men  liberally,  and  upbraiding  not  ( Jas. 
i.  5).  So  the  Christian  also  is  to  give  to  every  one 
who  asks,  and  not  to  demand  anything  in  return  ;  are 
they  not  gifts  of  the  Father's  grace  which  he  designs 
for  all  (Did.  i.  5,  iv.  7,  Barn.  xix.  11)  ?  Therefore  the 
Christian  is  to  share  everything  with  the  brother,  and 
to  call  nothing  his  own  :  "  If  ye  are  companions  in 
immortal,  how  much  more  in  mortal  things."  (Did. 
iv.  8,  Barn.  xix.  8).  He  who  gives  need  have  no 
scruples  if  sometimes  the  recipient  prove  unworthy  ; 
the  blame  and  punishment  fall  on  him  alone. 

All  this,  however,  as  they  learned  by  experience, 
was  not  sufficient  to  prevent  their  being  imposed  upon. 
Hence  there  is  added  (by  reference  to  an  apocryphal 
saying.  Sir.  xii.  1  ?),  "  Let  thine  alms  sweat  in  thine 
hands,  till  thou  knowest  to  whom  to  give  "  (Did.  i.  6). 
But  this  limitation — perhaps  not  introduced  till  later 
— was  not  much  observed.  It  does  not  appear  again 
in  any  of  the  older  works.  On  the  contrary,  uncon- 
ditional charity  is  more  and  more  enforced.  "  INIore 
powerful  than  prayer  is  fasting,  and  more  than  both, 
alms."  "  Alms  abolish  sins  "  (2  Clem.  xvi.  4).  This, 
it  is  true,  may  involve  a  moral  externalising  of  the 
most  sacred  and  most  serious  questions  of  life,  yet 
it  shows  the  energy  with  which  benevolence  was 
emphasised  as  a  decisive  demonstration  of  the 
Christian  spirit. 

The  Churches  have  grown.  They  have  received 
additions  from  every  rank  of  life.     At  the  same  time, 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  303 

however,  social  contrasts  have  increased.  True,  the 
Churches  for  which  the  Didache  is  intended  give  the 
impression  of  being  composed  essentially  of  small 
mechanics  and  peasants.  On  that  ground  the  offerings 
are  reckoned  in  natural  products.  The  presupposition 
that  a  wandering  brother  is  usually  a  mechanic  points 
to  the  same  probability.  In  the  Epistle  of  James,  too, 
the  Christians  appear  in  most  cases  to  belong  to  the 
poor  classes,  dependants  who  are  oppressed,  day- 
labourers  on  large  estates  whose  wages  are  kept 
from  them.  But  there  are  also  rich  members  of 
the  Church,  proprietors  and  merchants,  men  and 
women  who  appear  in  the  church  in  luxurious  dress 
(Jas.  i.  9  fF.,  ii.  2,  iv.  13,  v.  1  fF. ;  1  Tim.  ii.  9).  Now 
a  division  of  sentiment  is  to  be  observed.  On  the 
one  hand  we  see  the  Churches  take  pains  to  win  such 
people,  and  keep  them ;  for  charitable  objects  the 
presence  of  well-off  members  was  invaluable.  On 
the  other  hand  a  great  danger  clung  to  the  rich. 
Riches  were  a  source  of  worldliness.  It  shocks  the 
consciences  of  others  when  men  who  least  merit  it 
are  given  preference  in  the  Church.  The  rich  are 
haughty  (1  Tim.  vi.  17).  Business  interests  choke 
fear  of  God  and  brotherly  love.  The  love  of  money 
is  the  root  of  all  evil  (1  Tim.  vi.  9  f.).  Merchants 
make  plans  for  journeys  and  designs  for  profit,  as  if 
there  were  no  God  and  they  themselves  had  the  free 
disposal  of  their  lives  (Jas.  iv.  13  ff.). 

Proprietors  oppress  their  workmen  just  like  their 
unbelieving  colleagues,  who  have  dragged  poor 
Christians  before  the  judge,  have  slandered  the 
Christian  name,  have  condemned  and  killed  righteous 
men  unjustly  (ii.  6,  v.  6).     This  at  least  is  the  opinion 


304     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

of  the  author  of  the  Epistle  of  James,  which  we  must 
grant  has  an  express  sympathy  with  poverty.  For 
him  poverty  in  itself  is  a  boast  with  God,  an  "  exalta- 
tion " ;  the  rich  man  must  rejoice  when,  through 
confiscation  of  his  property,  he  is  raised  to  this  high 
level  (i.  9  f ).  The  author  of  the  Pastoral  Epistles  also 
recognises  the  moral  significance  of  wealth,  and  only 
requires  the  spending  of  it  in  trust  in  God  and  in  His 
intention,  i.e.,  to  do  good,  to  be  rich  in  good  works, 
to  be  generous  and  ready  to  communicate,  thus  to 
earn  a  treasure  in  the  future  life  (1  Tim.  vi.  17  ff.)- 
The  author  of  the  Epistle  of  James,  however,  does 
not  go  so  far  as  to  excite  the  poor  against  the  rich. 
On  the  contrary  he  gives  the  express  warning,  "  Be 
patient — and  murmur  not  against  one  another  "  (v.  7, 
9).  The  poor  man  is  not  to  wish  to  be  rich,  but  to 
be  content  when  he  has  food  and  clothing.  When 
united  with  contentment,  godliness  is  great  gain  (1 
Tim.  vi.  6  f.).  Labour  is  valued,  even  toiling  with 
the  hands  in  the  sweat  of  the  brow  ;  it  is  the  Christian's 
duty  to  earn  his  bread  (Barn.  x.  4,  Did.  xii.  3  f.). 

Opposition  to  false  teachers  led  to  greater  stress 
being  laid  on  the  moral  legitimacy  of  sustenance 
(1  Tim.  iv.  3  fF.).  The  use  of  a  little  wine  is  approved, 
and  even  advised  on  grounds  of  health  (v.  23).  This 
Christianity  desires  strict  habits,  but  no  extravagant 
asceticism. 

So  also  the  family  life.  Not  only  is  the  right  of 
marriage  recognised,  but  maternal  duties  are  directly 
idealised  and  included  under  religion.  The  begetting 
of  children  is  a  means  of  salvation  whereby  the  fall 
of  Eve  is  made  good.  To  that  end,  however,  the 
bringing  up  of  children  belongs  to  the  realm  of  faith. 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  305 

love,  and  holiness,  and  is  to  be  done  in  the  spirit 
of  rational  mildness  (1  Tim.  ii.  14  f.).  The  young 
Christian  married  women  are  shown  by  the  matrons 
how  to  love  their  husbands  and  children  aright,  to 
manage  their  housekeeping,  and  to  be  in  subjection 
to  their  husbands  (Tit.  ii.  4  f.).  The  head  of  a  house- 
hold who  does  not  keep  his  family  in  order  can  secure 
no  leading  position  in  the  Church  (1  Tim.  iii.  4  f., 
Tit.  i.  6).  The  duty  of  every  family  to  care  for  its 
own  members  was  already  spoken  of  (1  Tim.  v.  8). 
The  suspicions  against  second  marriage,  which  sprang 
from  ascetic  motives,  had  gained  strength  through  the 
evangelical  view  of  the  indissolubility  of  marriage 
and  (notwithstanding  Mark  xii.  18  f.)  the  Christian 
hope  of  resurrection,  but  they  were  not  generally 
regarded  in  practice. 

The  wife,  as  such,  receives  respect.  For  that  reason 
"  emancipation "  and  public  appearances  after  the 
manner  of  gnostic  prophetesses  are  not  tolerated. 
A\"omen's  duties  He  in  their  family  and  in  the  charit- 
able domain  (1  Tim.  ii.  9  fF.).  That  is  shown  by  the 
institution  of  the  "  widows  of  the  Church."  For  these 
there  are  particularly  strict  rules.  They  must  have 
fulfilled  their  family  duties,  and  their  moral  behaviour 
must  be  without  reproach.  The  special  danger  is 
conceived  to  be  gossip  and  drunkenness.  There  is 
no  mention  of  unchastity  among  them,  even  where 
the  subject  is  touched  upon,  or,  indeed,  in  the  whole 
literature  with  which  we  are  dealing.  1  can  explain 
this  only  by  the  suggestion  that  moral  conscious- 
ness on  this  point  had  really  been  elevated.  It  goes 
without  saying  that  such  sins  are  incompatible  with 

Christianity.     Only  in  respect  of  paganism  (1   Tim. 

20 


306     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

i.  9  f.,  Barn,  x.)  and  the  immorality  of  the  last  days, 
which  is  already  anticipated  by  the  false  teachers 
(2  Tim.  iii.  3),  are  these  vices  mentioned. 

Nor  in  the  matter  of  slavery  am  1  inclined  to  start 
from  Tit.  ii.  9  f.  The  warning  against  stealing  only 
mentions  how  the  Christian  slave  is  to  be  distinguished 
from  the  heathen  one.  The  thievish  slave  who  de- 
ceives his  master  when  possible,  was  a  familiar  character 
in  comedies ;  the  Christian  slave  must  be  different. 
The  danger  here  lay  in  a  quite  different  domain. 
The  theory  of  the  inner  equality  of  all  ranks  before 
God  furthered  lawlessness  and  desire  for  emancipation. 
That  could  have  very  evil  consequences  with  heathen 
masters.  The  risk  was  almost  greater  where  the 
master  was  a  Christian,  should  the  slave  take  advan- 
tage of  the  bond  of  brotherhood  between  them.  The 
warnings  in  1  Tim.  vi.  1  f  point  to  such  difficulties 
in  the  Churches,  but  show  what  pains  were  taken  to 
remove  beforehand  all  desire  of  emancipation  on  the 
part  of  slaves. 

Within  the  Churches  there  was  a  feeling  that  the 
general  condition  of  Christian  morality  was  not  at  the 
highest  level.  From  time  to  time  the  feeling  is  vented 
in  sharp  words  and  calls  to  repentance.  "  Cleanse 
your  hands,  ye  sinners,  and  purify  your  hearts,  ye 
double-minded,  be  afflicted,  and  mourn  and  weep," 
is  the  call  of  James  to  the  Churches  (iv.  8). 

Because  of  their  worldly-mindedness,  he  calls  them 
adulteresses,  and  exhorts  them  to  "  Lay  apart  all 
filthiness  and  superfluity  of  naughtiness"  (i.  21).  As 
a  matter  of  fact,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  the  danger 
of  secularisation  was  widespread.  We  have  proof  of 
this  fact  not  only  in  the  merchants  and  proprietors  of 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  307 

the  Epistle  of  James,  but  in  Hermas  especially.  We 
can  even  conclude  from  the  requirements  made  of 
church  officials  that  the  average  was  tolerably  low. 
When  it  needs  to  be  particularly  emphasised  that 
such  an  one  must  be  no  wine-bibber,  no  bully,  it 
seems  that  the  fact  was  not  of  itself  quite  clear  to  the 
rank  and  file  of  Christians.  Next  to  that,  it  is  in 
especial  sins  of  the  tongue,  and  the  quarrels  these  give 
rise  to,  which  are  dreaded  both  by  James  and  in  the 
Pastoral  Epistles.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  these  are 
the  only  blemishes,  and  against  them  a  hot  war  is 
waged.  Then,  too,  there  is  that  richness  in  practical 
activity  and  works  of  love,  besides  the  intensity  with 
which  the  moral  ideal  is  held  fast  and  always  set 
forth  anew  in  fair  formulation.  Taking  all  this  to- 
gether, we  may  well  conclude  that  the  Christianity  of 
that  period,  in  its  preaching  of  repentance,  had  made 
itself  worse  than  it  was,  and  even  this  does  honour  to 
its  moral  feeling.  In  addition  to  this  feeling  of  in- 
sufficiency among  the  Churches,  we  may  emphasise 
still  more  strongly  their  perfect  consciousness  of 
separation  from  the  heathen  environment,  and  that 
not  only  in  regard  to  a  diffisrence  of  ideal.  The 
inward  transformation,  which  the  individuals  had 
undergone,  was  felt  and  noted  (1  Tim.  i.  13,  Tit. 
iii.  3  f).  Renewed  through  the  forgiveness  of  sin, 
they  were  become  a  new  type  with  the  souls  of 
children  (Barn.  vi.  11).  The  place  of  all  forms  and 
degrees  of  impiety,  impurity,  and  falsehood  (1  Tim. 
i.  9  f.)  was  taken  by  eusebeia,  the  fear  of  God,  and 
with  it  came  a  new  Spirit-efFected  life,  which  meant 
thankful  and  hopeful  looking  to  God  in  all  conditions 
of  life  (Jas.  v.  13),  and  a  confidence  which,  without 


308     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

the  assurance  of  an  oath,  does  the  Lord's  commands 
(v.  12),  and  strives  for  the  goal  of  Christian  perfection 
(Jas.  i.  4).  The  Lord's  saying  (Matt.  ix.  13),  is  still 
clearly  remembered  (1  Tim.  i.  15,  Barn.  v.  9,  2  Clem, 
ii.  4),  although  it  is  weakened  by  a  theory  of  excuse 
for  sins  of  ignorance  (1  Tim.  i.  13).  Out  of  the  filth 
of  sin  they  have  every  one  of  them  been  called  to 
the  Church  :  but  purified  through  baptism,  they  have 
now  the  one  great  task  of  keeping  the  seal  inviolate 
(2  Clem.  vi.  9,  vii.  6,  viii.  6). 

However  much  this  may  at  times  smack  of  later 
Catholicism,  it  is  primitive  Christian.  There  still 
blows  a  fresh  breeze  from  the  Gospel ;  still  moral 
freedom  fights  against  legalism,  and  the  strong  hope 
of  the  Beyond  against  secularisation.  The  idea  of 
the  Church  is  strongly  emphasised,  but  it  has  not  yet 
pushed  its  way  between  God  and  men  and  become 
elevated  to  an  end  in  itself.  In  spite  of  all  conflict 
with  the  beginning  of  gnosticism,  moral  knowledge  is 
original,  naive,  spontaneous.  The  demands  are  set 
forth  in  their  entirety,  and  without  such  compromises 
as  the  Church  ethic  at  the  very  outset,  e.g.,  in 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  makes.  Churches  which 
hved  as  these  did  brought  the  Gospel  honour. 


LATER  CHRISTIANITY  AMONG  THE  HEATHEN. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

The  Churches  of  the  Transition  to 
Catholicism. 

the    church    of    ROME    IN    THE    TIME    OF    HERMAS. 

We  conclude  with  a  picture  from  the  Hfe  of  the 
Roman  Church.  It  belongs  to  a  considerably  later 
period,  the  utmost  limit  of  our  epoch,  but  it  has 
the  great  advantage  of  animation  and  individuality. 
Hennas,  our  authority,  is  no  quiet  and  remote 
observer ;  he  himself  belongs  to  the  Church.  His 
circumstances  constitute  a  part  of  it ;  his  thoughts 
and  feelings  reflect  the  thoughts  and  feelings  within 
it.  A  man  of  the  people,  naive  in  comprehension 
and  broad  in  expression,  he  gives  us  a  precious  view 
of  the  inner  course  of  the  Church's  life,  and  the  life 
of  individual  Christians.  His  circle  is  indeed  very 
limited.  He  confines  himself  entirely  to  the  con- 
cerns of  daily  life.  Questions  of  politics  trouble  him 
as  little  as  learned  speculation.  Ultimately  he  is 
possessed  by  one  sole  idea,  the  necessity  for  and  the 
possibility  of  a  second  repentance.  He  feels  himself 
a  prophet  commissioned  by  God  to  announce  the 
moment  of  grace,  and  sound  the  call  to  repentance 
(M.  XII.  iii.  3).     That  has  to  be  taken  into  account  in 

309 


310     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

valuing  what  he  has  to  say  on  the  moral  condition  of 
the  Roman  Church. 

His  book  is  not  the  issue  of  a  single  effort.  The 
picture  which  it  gives  of  the  Roman  Church  is  no 
instantaneous  one.  Composed  at  different  times,  it 
reflects  varying  frames  of  mind.  The  gradual  and 
conjoint  development  of  consecutive  revelations  is 
one  of  the  most  important  criteria  of  real  prophetic 
writings. 

The  work  may  embrace  a  period  of  several  de- 
cades ;  yet  there  is  nowhere  any  ground  to  suppose  a 
variety  of  authorship.  Hermas  is  well  acquainted 
with  the  general  edification  literature  in  the  Christian 
Church  of  his  time.  From  his  youth  he  has  evi- 
dently known  the  Old  Testament  in  the  Greek  trans- 
lation, and  has  fashioned  his  own  speech  upon  it. 
He  knows  Gospels,  Epistles,  works  like  the  "  Preach- 
ing of  Peter,"  and  the  "  Teaching  of  the  Apostles," 
and,  above  all,  books  of  revelation.  Reading  was 
evidently  not  an  entirely  familiar  art  to  him  (V.  ii.  i. 
4),  but  he  has  so  absorbed  the  writings  which  were 
read  in  the  services  of  the  Church,  and  in  private 
meetings  for  edification,  that  their  contents,  and  to 
some  extent  their  modes  of  expression,  have  become 
his  own.  This  relative  dependence  also  requires  to 
be  kept  in  view  in  estimating  what  he  has  to  say. 

We  begin  with  that  which  concerned  Hermas  him- 
self most  intimately,  and  therefore  possesses  greatest 
interest  for  us— his  confessions.  These  reveal  to  us 
the  actual  state  of  affairs  in  a  Christian  who  must  at 
least  be  reckoned  among  the  conscious  members  of 
the  Church,  though  in  a  certain  sense  also  he  may  be 
counted  among  its  spiritual  leaders.     To  liold  them 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  311 

as  a  mere  literary  form,  which  he  chooses  in  order  to 
chastise  the  sins  of  others,  does  not  explain  them  ;  the 
whole  man  is  too  naive.  On  the  other  hand,  this 
naivete  must  also  be  allowed  for. 

Hermas  has  not  the  skill  in  introspection  and 
self-torture  of  an  Augustine,  in  whose  confessions 
every  emotion  of  the  heart  and  every  thought  be- 
comes sin.  There  is  something  non-Christian  in 
Hermas,  though  he  does  not  himself  appear  to  have 
been  aware  of  it.  This  is  shown  by  the  way  in  which 
he  bristles  against  the  angel  of  punishment,  and  by 
the  declaration  that  he  has  indeed  many  sins,  but  not 
so  many  that  on  account  of  them  he  must  be  given 
over  to  that  angel  (S.  vii.  1,  2).  In  two  ways  he 
shows  a  trace  of  Pharisaism.  On  the  one  hand  he 
speaks  of  the  small  punishment  of  other  sinners 
(S.  VI.  iv.  2),  reckoning  it  mechanically  (4).  (The 
theory  of  remembrance,  v.,  weakens  this  only  a  little.) 
On  the  other  hand  he  calculates  on  the  possibility  of 
a  surplus  of  good  works  (S.  v.  iii.  3).  We  cannot 
acquit  him  of  a  certain  amount  of  vanity,  though  we 
may  excuse  it  to  his  naivete  that  he  repeatedly  sets 
forth  convincing  proofs  of  his  own  continence  (V.  i. 
ii.  4),  his  being  tried  in  persecution  (V.  ii.  iii.  2), 
and  his  zealous  prayer  (V.  iii.  i.  2,  S.  ix.  xi.  7). 

We  learn  from  Cyprian's  epistles  the  extraordinary 
self-exaltation  of  the  confessors  of  the  Decian  period  ; 
the  insubordination  of  ascetic  saints  has  often  enough 
given  trouble  to  the  Church.  The  vain  conceit  of 
Hermas  comes  very  clearly  to  light  in  the  sofa-scene 
(V.  in.  i.  8),  where  he  claims  the  place  of  honour. 
We  shall  judge  him  more  leniently  because  he  admits 
that  he  is  to  blame  for  it ;   but  the  pointed  way  in 


312     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

which  he  administers  a  thrust  to  the  elders  on  that 
occasion  cannot  be  counted  to  him  for  righteousness. 
The  cold  reception  which  he  prepares  for  the  shepherd 
(V.  V.)  throws  no  specially  favourable  light  on  his 
own  hospitality. 

But  all  this  only  shows  us  how  hard  it  is  for  men 
to  judge  themselves  justly.  Hermas  has  really  a 
very  different  opinion  on  these  things :  he  condemns 
ambition  and  pride,  and  sets  a  very  high  value  upon 
hospitality.  Undoubtedly  he  would  have  recognised 
and  penitently  acknowledged  his  fault  as  soon  as  he 
became  conscious  of  it. 

Hermas,  too,  has  a  feeling  of  guilt :  he  knows  that 
a  man  must  make  himself  responsible  for  every 
failure  (M.  ix.  8),  that  all  sorts  of  disasters,  losses, 
wants,  sicknesses,  are  divine  discipline  to  lead  the 
sinner  to  repentance  (S.  vi.  iii.  4  f.),  that  penitent 
consciousness  of  past  sins  is  the  pre-condition  of  all 
salvation  (V.  in.  vii.  6,  S.  vi.  iii.  6),  and  that  the 
sinner  after  conversion  and  penitence  must  not 
murmur  against  God's  punishment  (S.  vii.  4).  He 
is  conscious  that  his  want  of  Christian  knowledge  is 
a  consequence  of  his  earlier  sins  (M.  iv.  ii.  1).  Yet  he 
has  a  greater  consciousness  of  sin  than  others,  a  finer 
feeling  for  all  that  is  unrighteous.  This  sensitiA^eness 
goes  hand  in  hand  with  the  greater  sensibility  of  the 
prophet,  confessor,  and  ascetic. 

It  appears  in  the  very  first  scene,  the  meeting  with 
his  former  mistress,  V.  1.  Hermas,  whose  own  mar- 
riage was  not  fortunate,  is  aware  only  that  he  has 
harboured  the  thought,  "  How  lucky  were  I,  had  I  a 
wife  of  such  beauty  and  character."  There  was 
nothing    evil    in   his   thought.      But   he   has   to   be 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  313 

taught  by  the  heavenly  vision  that  this  thought 
too  is  a  sin  for  which  he  will  be  accused  before  God, 
a  wicked  impulse  which  is  fatal  to  him  as  a  just 
man. 

We  learn  from  this  that  the  Lord's  saying  in  Matt. 
V.  28  was  taken  seriously.  It  is  true  Hermas  himself 
weakens  this  impression  to  some  extent  by  afterwards 
repudiating  the  notion  of  sin  here.  What  he  was 
guilty  of  was  only  an  evil  will  leading  to  sin — a  thing 
which  was  objectionable  only  in  a  Christian  so  tried 
and  practised  in  abstinence  as  Hermas  the  confessor 
and  ascetic. 

A  second  confession  goes  deeper.  Hermas  is 
evidently  a  shopkeeper.  Business  always  causes  him 
a  great  deal  of  worry,  and  that  not  only  in  the 
ordinary  sense.  What  he  sees  in  it  rather  is  a  great 
danger  to  his  soul's  salvation.  This  we  can  quite 
understand,  for  he  admits  having  sadly  abused  the 
confidence  of  his  customers.  His  words  come  choked 
by  tears  of  repentance  :  "  Never  yet  in  my  life  have  I 
spoken  a  true  word,  but  have  always  spoken  like  a 
rogue  with  every  one.  My  own  lies  I  set  before  all 
people  as  the  truth,  and  no  one  ever  contradicted  me, 
but  my  words  were  believed "  (M.  iii.  3).  Though 
certainly  exaggerated,  these  words  show  us  how 
deeply  he  was  touched  by  the  exhortation  to  truth. 
The  pretended  ignorance  of  this  command,  behind 
which  he  tries  to  flee  (4),  makes  a  peculiar  impression. 
AVas  so  little  stress  laid  on  truth  and  honesty  in 
business  affairs  in  the  Christian  Church  that  they 
were  never  mentioned  ?  Hardly  credible !  But 
what  attitude  does  Hermas  adopt  when  he  knows 
better  ?      He   learns    and    resolves   to  make   up   for 


314     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

earlier  failure  by  honesty  in  the  future,  and  through 
a  blameless  method  of  business  to  deserve  in  reality 
the  credit  which  he  enjoyed  without  any  claim  upon 
it.  It  shows  his  honesty  that  he  thus  exposes  him- 
self, and  his  naivete  that  he  believes  he  can  make  up 
for  all  that  has  happened.  This  resolve  is  exceedingly 
creditable  to  him.  For  his  leanings  are  evidently  in 
quite  a  different  direction.  He  would  rather  give  up 
business  altogether ;  it  is  a  continual  temptation  to 
him.  He  finds  himself  eased  by  the  deprivation  of 
his  possessions,  evidently  through  confiscation  on 
account  of  his  Christianity.  The  world-fleeing  dis- 
position of  the  ascetic,  the  "  woe  to  earthly  posses- 
sions," is  always  recurring. 

The  worst,  however,  that  Hermas  is  aware  of  is  his 
neglect  of  his  own  house.  Whether  it  is  the  fanatic 
love  of  the  prophet  for  solitude  that  has  alienated  him 
from  his  own,  or  weakness  of  character  that  has 
prevented  him  from  taking  the  reins  in  hand — he  is 
reproached  with  foolish  fondness  of  his  children — he 
has  at  any  rate  proved  wanting  in  the  necessary 
discipline  and  in  the  constant  exhortation  of  his 
household,  and  has  quietly  looked  on  while  everything 
went  to  ruin  in  his  home. 

j  His  family  was  evidently  Christian.  Not  only, 
however,  had  his  wife  become  infamous  for  her  evil 
tongue,  but  his  children  too  had  strayed  to  the  extent 
of  blasphemy  and  denying  Christ.  Hermas,  whose 
own  ideas  about  apostasy  were  so  strict,  experienced 
the  agony  of  having  to  count  his  own  children  among 
the  backsliders.  The  circumstances,  too,  seem  to 
have  been  particularly  aggravating.  If  we  may  so 
construe   the   indications  which   are  not  quite  clear, 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  315 

his  children,  impelled  by  a  contemptible  desire  for 
gain,  or,  as  is  possible,  to  avoid  the  consequence  of 
their  father's  neglect  of  business  and  the  loss  of  means 
that  resulted  from  it,  denounced  their  own  father  as  a 
Christian  (V.  ii.  ii.  2).  It  did  not  profit  them.  The 
father  lost  his  all,  while  they  received  nothing  but 
the  reward  of  denunciation,  which  they  squandered. 
On  the  other  hand  the  father  feels  himself  lightened 
by  this  loss,  and  fosters  the  hope  that  the  time  is  now 
come  to  call  his  family  to  repentance.  Gladly,  there- 
fore, does  he  take  it  upon  himself  to  continue  zealous 
in  exhortation,  holding  out  at  the  same  time  the 
promise  that  there  shall  be  forgiveness  for  the  re- 
pentant. Their  names  also  shall  be  received  into  the 
book  of  life.  It  is  not  to  be  forgotten  either,  that  all 
this  is  said  to  Hermas  by  the  Church.  To  be  sure, 
she  appears  to  the  prophet  as  a  heavenly  figure.  But 
we  do  not  err  when  we  transfer  the  vision  to  earth. 
The  matter  touches  the  readmission  of  his  children 
into  the  Christian  Church,  from  which  they  have  shut 
themselves  out  by  their  apostasy.  This  also  explains 
the  much-contested  words  about  his  wife,  who  shall 
be  his  sister.  She,  who  was  evidently  already  a 
Christian,  appears  to  have  made  common  cause  with 
the  children  ;  she,  too,  must  be  accordingly  received 
into  the  Christian  communion  again. 

A  new  light,  however,  is  thus  thrown  on  these  con- 
fessions. They  are  no  private  confession  before  the 
heavenly  Church,  but  were  evidently  laid  before  the 
whole  Church,  to  which  the  work  as  a  whole  is 
naturally  dedicated.  That  reveals  anew  the  magnifi- 
cent moral  earnestness  of  the  man,  and  not  of  him 
only,    but   of    the    Christianity    of  his   time,    which 


316     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

expected  so  much  of  its  adherents.  What  valuable 
training  it  must  have  been  for  the  moral  consciousness 
of  the  Church,  that  a  man  specially  known  for  piety 
should  not  only  remove  the  offence  which  he  had 
publicly  given,  but  also  openly  confess  his  secret 
thoughts  and  make  known  his  own  increased  con- 
sciousness of  sin  to  others.  The  confessions  of 
Augustine  have  taught  centuries  to  confess. 

Hermas,  not  without  sinful  impulses,  of  doubtful 
business  integrity,  and  a  poor  head  of  his  house ! 
Certainly  this  is  no  happy  picture  of  a  Christian 
prophet,  but  is  it  not  all  outweighed  by  the  moral 
courage  of  the  confession  and  the  delight  which  he 
has  in  improvement  ? 

What  we  have  to  note  specially  in  this  man,  who 
belongs  to  a  Christian  period  already  showing  signs 
of  degeneration,  is  his  moral  delight  in  the  good,  the 
courage  with  which  he  bravely  surmounts  difficulties 
and  defies  the  devil.  Hermas  is  well  aware  that  he 
has  not  himself  to  thank  for  these  qualities.  Joyous- 
ness  is  not  in  any  way  natural  to  him.  He  rather 
takes  things  seriously,  has  continual  suspicions,  and 
would,  if  it  lay  with  himself,  turn  out  of  danger's 
way.  He  is  like  the  two-souled  man  (f^/xf^u^^?),  whom 
he  frequently  pictures.  He  is  continually  considering 
and  doubting  in  his  heart  whether  the  revelations 
really  contain  actuality  or  not  (V.  iii.  iv.  3,  cj.  iii.  4), 
whether  God  really  forgives  sins  and  hears  prayers  (M. 
IX.  1,  7).  He  is  frightened  at  approaching  troubles; 
he  would  fain  flee  from  them  (V.  iv.  i.  4,  7),  and 
through  this  very  uncertainty  he  falls  into  new 
dangers  (M.  v.  ii.  1  f ,  xi.  1).  But  there  is  something 
else   in   him,   something  which   contends   with   this 


TRANSITION   TO    CATHOLICISM  317 

natural  inclination  of  his,  whether  it  assume  the  form 
of  the  Church  or  of  the  Angel  of  Repentance,  whether 
he  trace  it  back  to  an  operation  of  the  Lord  or  the 
indwelling  of  His  Spirit.  It  is  the  criterion  of  the 
true  prophet.  For  the  essence  of  all  prophecy  con- 
sists in  this  inner  fight  between  the  natural  weakness 
of  man  and  the  divine  power  that  comes  over  him, 
compelling  him  to  do  and  to  speak  what  he  himself 
is  afraid  of  In  Hermas  this  inward  contradiction 
is  revealed  with  rare  clearness. 

He  pursues  the  confession  of  sins  so  busily  that  it 
is  almost  too  much  for  him.  He  makes  it  an  integral 
portion  of  e\'ery  prayer.  But  he  is  rebuked  :  "  Cease 
praying  continually  for  your  sins  ;  pray  for  righteous- 
ness, in  order  that  you  may  obtain  something  of  it 
for  your  house"  (V.  iii.  i.  6,  cf.  M.  xii.  vi.  3). 
Harnack  is  right  in  referring  this  to  Phil.  iii.  14,  and 
in  calling  it  a  real  evangelical  counsel.  It  transforms 
Hermas  from  a  state  of  melancholy  and  miserable 
wallowing  in  his  sin  to  a  joyous  Christianity,  which 
wins  the  courage  to  do  good. 

AVhen  the  Angel  delivers  his  commands,  Hermas 
finds  them  great,  beautiful,  and  glorious.  Happy 
the  man  who  could  fulfil  them !  But  who  can  do 
that  ?  They  are  hard.  Even  where  there  is  the  best 
possible  will,  for  which  every  man  will  surely  pray 
to  God,  the  devil  is  refractory  and  drags  men  down. 
So  he  thinks  (M.  xii.  iii.  4,  v.  1,  cf.  S.  vi.  i.  1).  But  the 
Angel  rebukes  him,  "  Thou  fool,  imprudent  and 
double-minded !  If  one  straightway  say,  '  That  I 
cannot  do,'  then  one  has  no  power ;  but  he  who 
gladly  resolves  to  fulfil  God's  commands,  finds  them 
easy."      The  man  does   not   depend    upon   himself: 


318     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG  THE   HEATHEN 

God,  who  has  made  him  lord  over  His  creation,  gives 
him  strength.  Only  he  must  have  the  Lord  not 
only  on  the  lips,  but  also  in  the  heart  (M.  xii.  iv.  4, 
cf.  S.  IX.  xxi.  1).  As  for  the  devil — a  Christian  does 
not  need  to  fear  him.  God  is  more  mighty  than  he. 
God's  angel  drives  him  out,  and  even  before  the  man 
who  boldly  fights  against  him,  the  devil  flees  con- 
quered and  full  of  shame.  He  is  a  fearful  being, 
without  elasticity,  like  a  corpse  (M.  vii.  2,  xii.  vi.  2). 
But  there  is  to  be  no  word  of  fear !  only  with  the 
whole  heart  hope  in  God  !  In  half-empty  vessels 
the  wine  perishes ;  in  half-men  the  devil  gets  his 
way.  It  is  an  evangelical  joyous  attitude  which 
reminds  us  of  Luther's  defiance  of  the  devil. 

In  this  sense  Hermas  keeps  up  a  constant  fight 
against  the  spirit  of  indecision,  of  half-and-halfness 
{§i^v)(j.a).  What  he  requires  is  the  whole  man  for 
Christianity,  perseverance  in  good  {\ .  ii.  ii.  7),  the 
fast  fixing  of  the  heart,  and  the  whole  heart  on  God 
(V.  III.  iii.  4,  IV.  ii.  4,  M.  x.  i.  6).  Repentance  must 
come  from  the  whole  heart  (V.  ii.  ii.  4,  iv.  ii.  5, 
S.  VII.  iv.,  VIII.  xi.  3);  from  the  whole  heart  faith; 
from  the  whole  heart  worship  (S.  viii.  vi.  2),  and  the 
confession  of  the  Lord  (S.  ix.  xiv.  6)  even  in 
suffering  (S.  ix.  xxviii.  2).  Where  there  is  the  right 
faith,  all  care  is  thrown  on  the  Lord  (V.  iv.  ii.  5), 
and  the  Christian  is  confident  that  he  can  do  all 
(V.  IV.  ii.  6).  That  is  the  ground  of  a  wonderful 
courage,   9a^o-o?  (V.  iv.  i.  8)   and  a  great  boldness. 

Among  the  most  remarkable  utterances  of  the 
whole  work  is  the  tenth  of  its  commandments.  It 
is  directed  against  sadness  (AfTr;?),  the  sister  of  double- 
mindedness  [^L^v^ia),  and  grumbling  {o^v-^^oXla).    James 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  319 

also  declaimed  against  wavering  and  double-minded - 
ness.  That  murmuring  is  un- Christian  is  self-evident ; 
but  the  statements  to  the  effect  that  sadness  is  the 
wickedest  of  all  the  spirits  (M.  x.  i.  2),  that  it  vexes 
and  drives  out  the  Holy  Spirit  (M.  x.  ii.  2),  astonish 
Hennas.  It  is  something  quite  new  to  him.  And 
yet  he  reaches  here  the  height  of  a  truly  evangelical 
conception,  the  joyous  Christianity,  certain  that  good 
will  conquer,  which  the  Lord  inculcated  upon  His 
disciples  in  opposition  to  the  sad  countenances  of 
Pharisaism,  and  which  Paul  at  the  most  exalted  point 
of  his  life  set  forth  in  his  will  to  the  Church  at 
Philippi.  In  the  case  of  Hennas  this  inward  joy 
finds  expression  in  outward  cheerfulness.  It  is  quite 
peculiar  what  a  role  this  "  cheerfulness "  {IXapoTrj^) 
plays  in  one  naturally  disposed  to  sadness.  We  learn 
from  it  also  that  here  we  have  to  do  with  Greek,  not 
Oriental,  piety.  Cheerful  as  the  angel  of  lust  and 
seduction  (S.  vi.  i.  6)  is  also  the  shepherd,  the  angel 
of  repentance  (S.  ix.  ix.  7),  and  in  his  company 
Hernias  himself  (x.  1 ).  The  virtues  are  cheerful  (x.  7), 
and  with  them  Hermas  (xi.  5).  The  Church  appears 
cheerful  to  him  (V.  i.  iv.  3),  and  will  become  always 
more  cheerful  as  Christians  grow  better  (V.  iii.  x.  4  f., 
cf.  ix.  10).  JNIore  cheerful  still  will  Hermas  be  when 
he  sees  her  (V.  iv.  ii.  2),  and  the  Christians  in  general 
when  they  learn  the  tidings  of  reprieve  (V.  iii.  iii.  1). 
In  cheerfulness  God  is  to  be  served  (M.  v.  i.  2),  and 
cheerfulness  is  given  as  a  characteristic  of  forbearance, 
ixaKpoQvixla  (M.  V.  ii.  3).  The  Holy  Ghost  Whom  God 
has  presented  to  man  is  cheerful  (M.  x.  iii.  2) ;  the 
environment  of  men  must  also  be  cheerful  (M.  ii.  4, 
S.  IX.  X.  3).     It  is  no  dark  apocalyptic  picture  that 


320    CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

this  story  and  these  revelations  give  us.  This,  how- 
ever, is  not  because  Hermas  the  Encratite  was 
naturally  of  a  cheerful  disposition,  but  because  his 
faith  had  wrestled  with  him,  and  forced  this  inward 
joy  and  gladness  upon  him. 

Hermas  is  as  bad  a  moralist  as  he  is  a  strong  moral 
character.  To  construct  his  ethical  system  would  be 
a  task  as  thankless  as  it  would  be  misguided.  How 
very  uncertain  he  is,  e.g.,  in  his  views  on  the  signifi- 
cance of  suffering ! 

Sometimes  suffering  is  conceived  as  an  impulse  to 
repentance  (V.  iv.  ii.  5,  S.  vi.  ii.  6,  iii.  6) ;  sometimes  he 
sees  in  it  actual  atonement  for  sin  (V.  ii.  iii.  1,  S.  vii. 
4).  Occasionally  he  comes  to  terms  with  it  in  a  very 
external  way :  as  the  head  of  a  family  Hermas  him- 
self must  suffer,  because  only  so  can  his  children  be 
reached  (S.  vii.  3).  This  is  an  idea  to  which  too 
much  honour  would  be  done  by  comparing  it  with 
the  supreme  ethical  thought  of  the  vicarious  suffering 
of  the  innocent.  In  a  definition  like  that  of  gluttony, 
TpvcpT]  (S.  VI.  V.  5),  "Everything  is  gluttony  for  a 
man  that  he  likes  doing,"  our  good  Hermas  gets 
into  such  difficulties  that  he  is  compelled  to  make  a 
very  artificial  distinction  in  order  to  avoid  the  con- 
sequence that  voluntary  beneficence  is  impermissible 
gluttony  (v.  7).  But  this  want  of  skill  in  method, 
a  consequence  of  his  want  of  philosophical  equipment, 
we  may  put  out  of  consideration ;  for  it  is  not  any 
system  but  immediate  moral  feeling  which  is  con- 
cerned when  we  emphasise  that  in  Hermas  an 
insistence  on  inwardness  is  characteristic. 

It  is  true  he  makes  statements  that  savour  strongly 
of  opus  oper^atum.      God  has  to  be   made   gracious 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  321 

(V.  I.  ii.  1) ;  a  surplus  of  good  works  is  possible  (S.  v. 
iii.    3).     But  they  vanish   entirely  when  we  observe 
how   much    more    importance    he    attaches    to   the 
intention  than  to  its   expression.     Of  the  individual 
works  of  Christian  love  he  speaks  comparatively  little, 
^^ery  frequently,  however,  he  enumerates  what  may 
be  called  the  virtues  and  failings  of  intention :  fear  of 
God,  abstinence,  simplicity,  innocence,  honour,  truth, 
purity,  long-suffering,  knowledge,   unity,    contented- 
ness ;    and  on  the  other  hand,  unbelief,  debauchery, 
disobedience,    lying,    melancholy,    wickedness,     sen- 
suality,   discontent,   deceit,   want   of    understanding, 
calumny    and    hate.     Sometimes    Hermas   attempts 
a     classification.       He      chooses     faith,     abstinence, 
strength,  and  forbearance  from  the   larger   group  as 
the  four  chief  virtues.     He  tries   to  derive   the  one 
from   the   other,  and    expressly  places   faith,  fear  of 
God,    in   the  forefront   of    all    his    commandments. 
This  reveals   his  knowledge   that   the   power   of  all 
morality  has  its  ultimate  basis  in  piety.     Under  this 
point  of  view  everything  turns  on  the  right  attitude 
of  the  heart  to  God.     From  this  attitude  the  right 
intention   always    comes   naturally ;    and  out  of  this 
the   right   activity   follows   as   an   inward    necessity. 
Hermas  is  so  convinced  of  this  that  his  preaching  of 
repentance  is  continually  being  summed  up   in   the 
exhortation  to  purify  the  heart  and  turn  it  to  God. 
This  feature  of  his   preaching   is  revealed  also  in 
the   method  by  which  he  seeks  to  motivate  his  ex- 
hortations.    Here  he  is  indeed  often  very  unskilful, 
and  he  binds  together  motives  of  very  different  value. 
Occasionally  he  condescends  to  trivialities.     The  rich, 
e.g.,    are   to   be    induced    to    give   liberally    bv   the 


322     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

hygienic  consideration  :  "  They  are  as  sick  that  surfeit 
with  too  much,  as  they  that  starve  with  nothing." — 
Merchant  of  Venice,  Act  I.  Sc.  ii.  (V.  iii.  ix.  3). 
Or  he  takes  his  stand  on  the  Christian's  hope  of 
compensation  (V.  iii.  ix.  5,  v.  7,  S.  i.  5),  and  is 
fond  of  laying  stress  on  the  fact  that  the  fulfilhng  of 
all  promises  as  well  as  the  hearing  of  special  prayers 
(S.  V.  iii.  9)  is  connected  by  God  with  the  keeping  of 
His  commands  (V.  v.  7,  S.  i.  7).  It  is  therefore 
a  familiar  thought  with  him  that  the  right  Christian 
conduct  is  advantageous  and  useful,  a-v^cpopou, 
(rv/uL(pop(aT€pov  (S.  I.  5,  VI.  i.  3,  X.  iv.  2).  This  leads 
him  occasionally  to  fall  into  an  unintended  opposition 
to  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  and  the  difficulty  of 
the  right  way  (M.  vi.  i.  4,  cf.  Matt.  vii.  13  f.).  With 
all  this,  however,  his  ethic  is  in  the  highest  degree 
religiously  and  inwardly  grounded ;  he  who  has  the 
Lord  in  his  heart  keeps  His  commandments  (M.  xii. 
iv.  3).  The  God-fearing  man  seeks  after  divine 
things,  and  he  who  has  his  heart  directed  on  God, 
apprehends  them,  for  where  the  Lord  dwells  there  is 
much  understanding  (M.  x.  i.  6).  Hermas  takes  his 
stand  on  the  summit  of  evangelical  motives  and 
measures  human  obligation  by  divine  practice  {cf. 
Matt.  V.  48).  If  the  Almighty  does  not  upbraid 
those  who  confess  their  sin  to  Him,  but  is  merciful, 
should  not  men  also  forgive  ?  (S.  ix.  xxiii.  4).  God 
intended  man  to  be  the  lord  of  creation ;  should 
not  man  have  the  power  to  fulfil  God's  intention  ? 
(M.  XII.  iv.  2  f.).  Only  tentatively  does  the  pattern 
of  Christ  appear.  In  Hermas  the  historical  person 
of  Jesus  Christ  stands  remarkably  in  the  back- 
ground,    The  readiness  of  Christ's  humanity  to  serve, 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  323 

and  to  obey  the  indwelling  Holy  Spirit  walking  in 
honour  and  purity  (S.  v.  vi.  5  f.)  is  held  up  to  the 
Christians.  In  the  Son  of  God,  Who  is  preached  as  a 
law  to  all  ends  of  the  earth  (S.  viii.  iii.  2),  what  is 
thought  of  is  not  the  pattern  life  of  Christ,  but  the 
revelation  of  God's  will  through  the  Holy  Spirit  AVho 
was  in  Him,  and  the  commands  which  constitute  the 
essential  content  of  the  Gospel. 

Not  the  life  of  Jesus  but  the  apostolic  life  is 
here  the  pattern.  The  apostles,  whose  task  it  is  to 
evangelise  the  world,  both  the  living  and  the  dead 
(S.  IX.  xvi.  5  f ),  are  the  true  types  of  a  walk  in 
divine  honour,  righteousness,  and  truth,  free  from  all 
inordinate  desire,  inseparable  from  all  virtues  and 
pattern  of  unity  (V.  iii.  v.  1,  S.  ix.  xv.,  4,  6,  xxv.  2). 
Here,  as  in  the  martyrs  so  highly  celebrated  by 
Hermas,  the  first  tendencies  to  the  later  hagiolatry 
are  to  be  observed ;  but  it  is  a  remarkable  criterion 
of  the  whole  moral  spirit  of  this  Christianity  that  it 
is  the  thought  of  the  moral  pattern  which  lifts  these 
men  here  to  such  exaltation. 

If  the  motive  adopted  to  support  its  demands  is 
always  a  measure  of  the  strength  of  moral  conscious- 
ness, we  shall  be  able  to  adduce  good  witness  for  the 
Christianity  of  Hermas. 

It  is  not  as  Hermas  that  our  author  interests  us 
here,  but  as  a  type  of  the  Christianity  in  the  Roman 
Church  of  his  time.  And  as  a  matter  of  ftict  he  is 
typical  in  the  good  as  well  as  in  the  bad.  He 
indicates  this  fact  himself  by  continually  generalising 
the  exhortations  and  instructions  directed  to  himself 
personally  and  applying  them  to  all  saints  (V.  i.  i.  9), 
to  all  who  have  sinned  (V.  ii.  ii.  4),  to  all  who   do 


324     CHRISTIANITY    AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

righteously  (V.  ii.  iii.  2),  and  to  all  who  do  not 
doubt  (V.  III.  ii.  2).  The  vision  of  the  beast  which 
represents  the  approaching  persecution  is  to  be 
recounted  to  all  the  chosen  of  the  Lord  (V.  iv.  ii.  5). 
The  commands  are  by  no  means  directed  solely  to 
him,  but  he  who  always  hears  them  and  acts  accord- 
ingly will  live  to  God  (M.  ii.  6,  iii.  5,  iv.  ii.  4,  iii.  7, 
V.  i.  7,  ii.  8,  VI.  i.  5).  The  moral  ideas  of  Hernias 
cannot  have  been  peculiar  to  him :  he  reckons  on  a 
larger  circle  of  like-minded  Christians  among  whom 
his  preaching  shall  find  sympathy.  On  the  other 
hand  Hermas  is  certainly  not  the  only  one  who  had 
to  make  such  confessions.  We  can  see  that  from  the 
short  exhortations  which  he  directs  to  the  Church. 

Even  the  external  circumstances  are  typical. 
Hermas  belongs  to  the  commercial  middle  class. 
He  had  not  been  free  from  birth.  Sold  from  his 
Arcadian  home  when  a  youth,  he  was  taken  to  Rome 
and  there  secured  his  freedom.  A  shop — the  exact 
nature  of  it  we  do  not  know — maintains  him  and  his 
family.  He  is  not  well  off,  but  still  not  poor.  So  it 
may  have  been  with  the  average  of  the  Roman  Church 
of  his  time.  There  were  indeed  not  wanting  rich 
people,  nor  those  who  had  acquired  means  after  their 
adoption  of  Christianity  (S.  viii.  ix.  1),  Hermas 
has  no  particular  love  for  them. 

There  were  not  lacking  poor  either,  who  were 
entirely  dependent  on  the  rich  for  support.  About 
them  Hermas  is  exceedingly  concerned.  They 
appear  to  him  to  be  the  really  devout,  without  whom 
the  rich  man  cannot  get  on  by  reason  of  his  barren- 
ness in  religion.  That  there  were  many  in  the 
Church  who  were  not  free,  many  slaves,  is  nowhere 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  325 

indicated.  The  great  bulk  of  the  Church  was  prob- 
ably made  up  of  citizens,  freedmen  like  Hennas 
himself,  people  who  followed  their  trade.  For  it  is 
one  of  Hermas'  chief  cares  to  relieve  the  Christians 
from  being  choked  by  worldly  concerns. 

Of  the  Church's  relation  to  the  state  we  learn 
practically  nothing.  I  do  not  at  all  think  that  the 
Roman  Emperor  is  thought  of  in  S.  i.,  where  the 
right  of  citizenship  in  the  world  is  contrasted  with 
citizenship  in  the  city  of  Cxod,  and  the  laws  of  the 
Lord  of  this  city  with  the  laws  of  God.  It  is  rather 
the  devil  that  is  intended  by  the  ruler  of  the  world. 
The  silence  of  Hermas  in  this  regard  can  be  explained 
by  the  fact  that  political  life  lay  entirely  beyond  his 
field  of  vision.  As  he  did  not  belong  to  the  leaders 
of  the  Church,  political  considerations  affected  him 
very  little.  But  indeed,  if  the  question  of  the  relation 
to  the  state  had  been  really  a  burning  one  in  the 
Church,  Hermas  would  have  assumed  a  definite 
attitude  to  it,  and  all  the  more  because  persecution 
and  apostasy  play  a  leading  part  in  his  thoughts. 
We  have  to  conclude  that,  in  spite  of  the  many  and 
varied  oppressions  which  she  had  had  to  experience 
and  expected  again  e\'ery  minute,  the  Roman  Church 
of  that  period  had  loyally  laid  to  heart  the  Apostle's 
exhortation  in  Rom.  xiii.  1-7.  Hermas,  the  con- 
fessor, has  had  his  own  possessions  confiscated,  but 
lie  sees  in  the  deprivation  only  a  wholesome  dis- 
ciplining of  him  by  God ;  he  does  not  think  of 
fostering  dark  thoughts  of  revenge  nor  of  calling  his 
companions  of  the  faith  in  the  name  of  God  to 
conspire  against  the  power  of  the  state  hostile  to 
Hhn. 


326     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

To  the  external  relations  of  the  Roman  Church 
belongs  also  its  relation  to  the  Christian  Churches  in 
other  places.  We  have  already  learned  that  this 
relation  was  very  active.  We  shall  therefore  attribute 
it  to  the  narrowness  of  our  author's  point  of  view 
that  he  has  practically  nothing  to  say  on  the  point. 
The  only  passage  is  V.  ii.  iv.  3,  which  looks  almost 
like  a  reference  to  the  so-called  first  Epistle  of 
Clement.  Of  the  two  copies  which  Hermas  has  to 
make  of  the  special  revelation  given  to  him,  Clement  is 
to  send  the  one  to  the  other  towns  ;  for  that  has  been 
entrusted  to  him.  We  may  well  consider  this  an 
indication  that  epistolary  communication  was  regu- 
larly kept  up  with  other  Churches. 

The  Church  in  Rome  remained  true  to  the  obliga- 
tions which  its  position  in  the  centre  of  the  empire, 
in  the  metropolis,  laid  upon  it.  And  even  at  a  later 
date  we  shall  find  this  consciousness  of  responsibility 
for  the  whole  Church  still  alive  in  the  Church  and 
among  the  clergy  of  Rome. 

The  feeling  of  union  with  the  whole  of  Christendom 
was  maintained  alive  in  the  Church  at  Rome  more 
than  in  other  Churches  through  the  constant  arrival 
of  stranofcrs  who  were  one  with  the  Roman  Christians 
in  faith.  Among  the  Christians  of  that  period  in 
general  there  was  developed  a  keen  desire  to  move 
about.  This  was  due  to  their  release  from  former 
narrow  notions  of  home  on  the  one  hand,  and  to 
their  striving  after  close  fellowship  with  the  scattered 
companions  of  the  faith  on  the  other.  Rome  offered 
special  attractions.  Here,  in  the  place  where  the 
great  apostles  Peter  and  Paul  had  worked  and  sealed 
their  witness  with  their  blood,  there  was  one  of  the 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  327 

most  conspicuous  and  significant  Christian  Churches. 
The  capital  of  the  world  offered  in  addition  plenty 
that  was  worth  seeing,  even  when  the  Christian  had 
only  the  thought  of  becoming  acquainted  with  the 
great  Babylon,  from  which  shortly  there  was  to 
proceed  the  destruction  of  all  existing  things  that 
was  to  precede  the  longed-for  establishment  of  the 
Kingdom  of  God.  A  visit  to  Rome,  the  centre  of 
commerce  and  of  administration,  was  sometimes  due 
to  business  necessities,  and  many  had  to  go  there  in 
connection  with  lawsuits  in  which  they  themselves  or 
others  were  concerned.  Then  there  were  the  count- 
less hosts  brought  there  as  slaves.  Their  presence 
laid  special  duties  on  the  Christian  Church :  these 
brethren  who  came  to  them  must  be  cared  for. 
Here  we  see  clearly  that  Christian  hospitality  was 
organised  by  the  Church.  There  were  special  officials, 
the  bishops,  on  whom  it  devolved  to  exercise  this 
duty  (hence  eTrla-Koiroi  Koi  ipiXo^evoi,  S.  IX.  xxvii.),  just 
as  the  care  of  the  poor  is  strictly  regulated  and 
entrusted  to  the  deacons  (S.  ix.  xxvi.) ;  naturally 
neither  excluded  the  private  exercise  of  hospitality 
and  charity. 

How  far  the  Church  as  a  whole  provided  for  her 
own  members  we  learn  from  Hermas  only  in  a  very 
fragmentary  way.  There  may  have  been  funds  for 
sick  and  dead,  as  in  the  majority  of  Roman  societies 
of  humbler  people  outwardly  similar  to  the  Christian 
Church.  Hermas  does  not  speak  of  this.  He  once 
mentions  an  administration  of  funds  to  be  attended 
to  by  the  diaconate,  i.e.,  giving  relief  from  the  funds 
of  the  church  to  widows  and  orphans.  That  might 
possibly  be  confined  to  the  distribution  among  the 


328     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

poor   of    the    offerings    left    over    in    the    common 
meals. 

We  are  not  to  wonder  at  finding  so  little  on  all 
these  matters  in  Hennas.  The  preacher  of  repent- 
ance is  in  the  first  place  an  individualist.  The  more 
inwardly  he  apprehends  religion  and  morality,  the 
more  importance  he  attaches  to  the  laying  hold  of 
individuals.  When  he  so  strongly  emphasises  the 
duties  towards  the  whole,  as  we  shall  presently  find 
him  doing,  he  reveals  clearly  how  essential  the  feeling 
of  community  was  to  the  Christianity  of  the  period. 

Firmness  arises  from  pressure.  The  feeling  of 
close  connection  was  kept  alive  among  the  ancient 
Christian  Churches  by  persecution.  It  was  a  Church 
of  martyrs  in  which  Hermas  lived.  A  severe  perse- 
cution which  had  just  been  experienced  forms  the 
background  of  his  preaching  of  repentance,  and,  on 
the  other  hand,  the  certain  expectation  that  very 
quickly  a  new  and  greater  will  come,  gives  his 
exhortation  weight  and  urgency  (V.  ii.  ii.  7,  iii.  4, 
IV.  ii.  5). 

The  persecution  had  tested  faith,  at  least  in  the 
case  of  a  section  of  the  Church.  Some  had  had  to 
seal  a  bold  confession  with  death  ;  others  had  had  to 
endure  all  sorts  of  affliction — prison,  torture  and  the 
like — or,  like  Hermas  himself,  had  had  to  suffer  con- 
fiscation of  their  goods.  Naturally  that  served  to 
strengthen  the  Christian  consciousness  and  to  increase 
moral  power.  But  it  also  brought  new  dangers. 
We  already  indicated  that  in  Hermas  himself 
signs  are  to  be  found  of  that  confessor- vanity  which 
afterwards  became  so  notorious.  The  martyrs  were 
held    in    extraordinary   esteem    (S.    viii.    iii.   6,    ix. 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  329 

xxviii.).  They  take  their  stand  immediately  next 
the  apostles  {V.  iii.  v.  2).  Like  baptism,  the 
bath  of  blood  effaces  without  more  ado  all  earlier 
sins  (S.  IX.  xxviii.  3).  The  martyr  is  eo  ipso  well- 
pleasing  to  God  {V.  III.  i.  9) ;  he  has  a  claim  to  the 
highest  place  of  honour  in  heaven  (V.  iii.  ii.  1). 

Yet  Hermas  breaks  away  from  the  tendency 
to  conceive  martyrdom  as  the  highest  and  most 
meritorious  achievement,  the  very  apex  of  service. 
He  declares  it  must  not  be  thought  that  a  great  work 
has  been  done  in  suffering  for  the  cause  of  God  ;  for 
that,  too,  is  a  grace  of  God  Who  hereby  offers  sinners 
the  possibility  of  becoming  free  from  their  guilt  and 
entering  into  life  (S.  ix.  xxviii.  5  f ).  Here  we  see 
again,  as  so  often  in  Hermas,  two  views  in  conflict 
with  one  another ;  the  ordinary  Catholic  Christian 
conception,  and  an  evangelical  view  which  is  higher 
both  from  the  religious  and  the  moral  standpoint. 

Otherwise  the  high  value  set  upon  martyrdom 
can  be  inferred  from  the  observation  that  the  true 
confessors  formed  no  very  large  part  of  the  Church. 
However  highly  Hermas  and  his  friends  praised 
martyrdom,  many,  nevertheless,  preferred  to  preserve 
this  earthly  life  and  its  pleasures.  Hermas  has  a 
depressing  feeling,  that  in  the  last  persecution  a  very 
large  section  of  Roman  Christianity  either  avoided 
confession  or  directly  denied  Christ.  The  occasion  of 
his  whole  preaching  of  repentance  was  the  question 
whether  it  was  possible  for  such  as  have  already, 
through  baptism,  received  perfect  remission  of  sins, 
to  be  again  delivered  from  such  serious  guilt  ?  Could 
they  again  enter  into  the  Church  of  the  saints  ? 
Hermas  has  himself  a  very  personal  interest  in  this 


330     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

question,  because,  as  we  saw,  he  had  to  count  his  own 
children  and  wife  among  the  apostates.  He  now 
lays  hold  on  the  mercy  of  God.  He  who  has  once 
received  forgiveness  of  sins  should  sin  no  more  but 
dwell  in  holiness ;  but  God's  great  love  permits  Him 
to  have  mercy  on  the  weakness  of  men  (M.  iv.  iii. 
2,  4  f ).  Thus  the  thought  of  a  second  repentance 
originates.  Hermas  knows  himself  commissioned  by 
God  to  proclaim  this  message  of  grace  to  Christen- 
dom :  there  is  still  a  space  for  repentance.  But  yet 
— here  the  old  view  is  at  work — there  is  only  one 
second  repentance  (M.  iv.  iii  6),  and  the  time  for  it 
is  short  (V.  ii.  ii.  5,  iii.  v.  5).  Following  his  usual 
practice  of  making  everything  clear,  wherever  possible, 
by  a  classification,  he  here  divides  Christians  who  have 
sinned  into  those  from  whom  a  second  repentance  is 
still  to  be  expected,  and  those  in  regard  to  whom  this 
is  not  the  case  (S.  viii.  6-11).  As  he  distinguishes 
between  martyrs  and  confessors  (V.  iii.  ii.  1),  and 
among  the  former  again  between  those  who  have 
gone  joyously  to  death  and  those  who  have  done  so 
only  after  delay  (S.  ix.  xxviii.  4),  so  also  among  the 
apostates  he  makes  a  distinction  between  those  who 
have  simply  denied  Christ,  and  those  who,  through 
express  blaspheming  of  the  name  of  Christ,  have 
aggravated  their  apostasy.  From  the  latter  he 
expects  no  I'cpentance  (S.  vi.  ii.  3,  viii.  vi.  4). 

In  general,  however,  he  has  not  much  hope ;  for 
one  who  has  fallen  from  grace  is  not  only  become  as 
he  was  before,  but  worse  (S.  ix.  xvii.  5).  Apostates 
are  on  precisely  the  same  footing  as  heathen ;  they 
have  even  less  of  a  prospect,  for  to  the  heathen 
repentance  always  remains  open  (V.  ii.  ii.  5).     In  the 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  331 

case  of  JMaximus,  probably  a  leading  member  who 
appears  to  have  returned  to  the  Church  after  his 
apostasy,  Hernias  is  exceedingly  concerned  lest  the 
next  storm  wash  him  overboard  again  (V.  ii.  iii.  4). 
For  the  repentant,  however,  a  complete  union  with 
the  Church  and  the  fixed  determination  not  to  avoid 
the  renewal  of  persecution  are  necessary.  Even  a 
momentary  hesitation  whether  to  confess  or  not  is, 
if  not  direct  sin,  yet  wicked.  It  detracts  from  the 
glory  of  the  martyrdom  (S.  ix.  xxviii.  4  f.). 

On  the  other  hand  Hermas  has  now  to  learn  that 
many,  having  once  denied  Christ,  do  not  wish  to 
become  connected  with  the  Church  again  (S.  ix. 
xxvi.  3) ;  while  others  who  have  not  publicly  fallen 
from  Christianity  keep  far  from  the  Church.  In 
these  isolated  Christians  (juoi^d^oi'Teg)  we  have  a  very 
remarkable  phenomenon  which  must  be  set  parallel 
to  the  usual  form  of  Jewish  proselytism  in  the  higher 
ranks  of  Roman  society.  They  adopted  what  they 
thought  good,  the  monotheistic  faith  and  the  noble 
moral  commands,  while  they  observed  also  one  or 
other  of  the  ceremonial  laws  so  as  not  to  be  entirely 
without  the  guarantee  of  the  pleasingness  of  such  a 
life  to  God.  But  the  attempt  was  made  to  keep  far 
away  all  the  discomfort,  all  that  a  closer  connection 
with  such  a  religious  brotherhood  involved.  It  is  in 
every  case  the  well-off,  those  belonging  to  better 
classes,  of  whose  separation  from  the  Christian 
Church  Hernias  complains.  How  was  an  eminent 
Roman,  however  much  he  was  impressed  with 
Christianity  and  its  strong  monotheism,  its  sure  hope 
of  the  future,  and  its  truly  elevated  morals,  to  be  on 
familiar  terms  with  the  common  people  who  found 


332     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

themselves  together  with  him  in  the  Christian  Church 
and  claimed  to  be  considered  his  brethren  ?  Besides, 
did  not  Christianity  expose  one  to  burdens  of  all  sorts  ? 

In  the  Church  one  was  continually  being  solicited  for 
alms  (S,  IX.  XX.  2) ;  the  brethren  were  always  in  need  of 
hospitality.  Then,  too,  one  was  exposed  to  the  jeers 
of  former  companions.  And  what  was  even  worse, 
one  ran  danger  of  coming  in  contact  with  the 
police.  For  these  Christian  brethren  did  not  enjoy 
the  advantage  which  the  synagogue  had,  of  being 
recognised  by  the  state  as  a  lawful  religious  society. 
They  were  hunted  as  criminals  of  whom  the  very 
worst  could  be  said.  The  very  name  of  Christian 
was  enough  to  secure  condenmation  (S.  ix.  xxviii.  3, 
^m  TO  ovofxa).  Confiscation  of  goods  was  the  v^ery 
least  that  could  be  looked  for  {Y.  iii.  vi.  5).  Scourging, 
prison,  severe  tortures,  crucifixion  and  fighting  with 
wild  beasts  in  the  arena  were  in  prospect  (V.  in.  ii.  1). 
Naturally  that  thought  alone  was  enough  to  frighten 
many  from  joining  the  Christian  body  ;  and  when  the 
report  of  an  approaching  persecution  was  spread, 
these  would  do  everything  they  could,  to  blot  out 
the  slightest  appearance  of  belonging  to  it. 

The  synagogue  tolerated  tliis  ambiguous  position, 
it  was  always  a  means  of  maintaining  influential 
connections  with  leading  people,  who  would  otherwise 
be  quite  inaccessible.  There  did  exist  indeed  among 
the  propagandists  of  Judaism  people  of  stricter  con- 
victions, as  we  learn  from  Josephus'  account  of  the 
conversion  of  the  Prince  of  Adiabene  and  his  family. 
But  Christianity  could  under  no  conditions  endiu-e  such 
lukewarmness.  The  Church  of  confessors  required  a 
real  confession  and  one  in  union  with  herself.     Only 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  333 

in  her  midst  could  holiness  be  achieved.  He  who 
separated  from  her  lost,  while  he  thought  to  win,  his 
life  (S.  IX.  xxvi.  3).  We  have  already  repeatedly  met 
with  the  warning  against  forsaking  the  assemblies, 
but  nowhere  does  the  exhortation  to  hold  fast  to  the 
saints  meet  us  so  often  as  in  Hermas  (V.  iii.  ii.  G, 
vi.  2,  S.  VIII.  viii.   1,  ix.   1,  ix.  xx.  2,  xxvi.  3). 

\\^ith  the  requirement  of  close  connection  with  the 
Christian  Church  and  all  her  members,  goes  hand  in 
hand  the  demand  for  a  strict  outward  exclusiveness. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  there  must  have  been  here  a 
great  danger  for  Christianity,  and,  in  particular,  for 
its  moral  character — the  danger,  viz.,  of  deterioration 
to  paganism  while  the  outward  appearance  of 
Christianity  was  retained.  Hermas  speaks  tolerably 
often  of  people  who  may  w^ell  be  Christians,  who  have 
faith,  and  bear  the  Christian  name  (S.  ix.  xiii.  2, 
xix.  2),  but  who  do  not  in  any  way  bear  out  the 
moral  ideal  of  Christianity. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  all  that  Hermas  regards  as 
pagan.  Not  only  is  idolatry  itself  pagan,  although 
in  the  deeds  and  works  of  the  heathen  (S.  viii.  ix.  3) 
and  the  things  which  the  heathen  do  (M.  iv.  i.  9), 
that  is  thought  of  chiefly.  An  attitude  towards 
Christian  prophets  which  recalled  the  mantic  and 
involved  the  consultation  of  them  about  all  sorts  of 
things,  also  appears  to  him  to  be  pagan.  The  stupid 
doctrines  and  views  into  which  many  Christians  have 
fallen  back  are  pagan  (S.  viii.  ix.  3),  and  also  the 
w^hole  system  of  expensive  food,  etc.,  that  many 
adopt  (S.  I.  10).  Pagan  is  the  antithesis  of  holy  and 
just.  The  heathen,  along  with  apostates  and  sinners, 
are  opposed  to  the  Christians  as  the  just  (V.  i.  iv.  2, 


334     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

S.  IV.  4).  Accordingly  the  worst  epithet  of  reproach 
which  Hermas  has,  is  "  heathen."  In  his  judgment  of 
the  false  prophets  and  those  who  honour  them,  the 
decisive  and  incriminating  factor  is  that  their  whole 
behaviour  has  something  idolatrous  in  it,  that  it  is 
heathen  mantic  with  the  form  of  Christian  prophecy 
(M.  XI.  4).  Wealth  appears  to  him  for  the  same 
reason  equally  dangerous,  because  it  reveals  a  con- 
nection with  paganism,  to  which  it  is  ever  dragging 
its  possessor  down  (S.  i.  10).  If  it  does  not  cause 
direct  denial,  it  leads  to  a  life  of  wanton  luxury,  which 
brings  to  death  or  at  least  to  the  brink  of  ruin. 

This  was  evidently  the  greatest  danger  of  all  for 
the  vigorous  moral  development  of  personal  Chris- 
tianity. The  old  social  relations,  the  "  heathen  friend- 
ships," as  Hermas  says  in  anger,  were  kept  up  (M.  x. 
i.  4).  The  Christians  took  pains  to  secure  favour 
with  the  heathen,  especially  if  they  had  any  property, 
or,  worse  still,  if  they  had  just  acquired  some.  With 
no  thought  of  falling  away  from  Christianity,  all 
sorts  of  un-Christian  forms  were  observed  in  social 
intercourse ;  the  tone  of  heathen  society,  with  its 
haughtiness  and  frivolity,  was  adopted,  and,  without 
knowing  it,  many  Christians  were  in  danger  of  being 
altogether  brought  into  this  current  and  so  falling 
from  God  in  very  truth  (S.  viii.  ix.  1,  3).  To 
Hermas  this  is  a  most  pernicious  presumption,  and 
he  cannot  warn  them  enough  against  it.  The 
danger  which  here  threatened  the  Christian  Church 
is  revealed  by  the  fact  that  Hermas,  who  in  other 
respects  was  by  no  means  a  hard  man,  insists  with 
the  utmost  rigour  on  perfect  separation  from  every- 
thing heathen. 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  335 

A  pagan  life,  participation,  that  is,  in  pagan  cere- 
monial and  pagan  practices,  is,  like  adultery,  to  be 
sufficient  ground  of  divorce  ;  one  who  continues  to 
live  with  a  Christian  who  leads  such  a  life  becomes 
equally  guilty  (M.  iv.  i.  9).  The  matter  is  not  one 
of  mixed  marriages,  but  of  Christian  marriages  in 
which  one  partner  threatens  to  fall  or  has  already 
fallen  back  into  paganism,  as  was  the  case  with  the 
author's  own  wife.  Everything  that  bears  even  a 
remote  resemblance  to  paganism  is  to  be  avoided  by 
the  Christian.  Christianity  is  to  exhibit  itself  as  a 
Church  of  holy,  righteous,  and  God-fearing  men, 
quite  exclusive  but  bound  in  an  internal  and  close 
union. 

The  Church  was  no  longer  a  fortuitous  conjunction 
of  men  of  the  same  faith  and  aim.  She  had  an 
organisation.  She  possessed  leaders  and  officials.  It 
is  true  we  are  not  altogether  clear  on  these  points, 
but  the  existence  of  leaders  (V.  ii.  ii.  6,  in.  ix.  7),  of 
presbyters  as  managers  (V.  ii.  iv.  3),  of  bishops  and 
deacons  for  church  work  (S.  ix.  xxvi.,  xxvii.),  is 
certain.  Where  there  are  such  leaders,  they  are 
responsible  not  only  for  the  outward  weal  of  the 
Church,  but  also  for  her  moral  condition.  When 
the  angel  of  repentance  in  the  form  of  a  shepherd  so 
strongly  emphasises  the  responsibility  of  the  shepherd 
for  his  flock  (S.  ix.  xxxi.  5),  we  may  be  sure  that  not 
only  he  himself  is  intended,  but  all  the  shepherds  of 
the  Christian  Churches.  It  seems  that  the  leaders 
of  the  Roman  Church  have  not  by  any  means  borne 
out  these  requirements  perfectly.  They  must  be 
warned  to  better  their  ways  in  righteousness  (V.  ii. 
ii.    6) ;     they   have   poison    in   their   heart    and    are 


336     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

hardened ;  they  will  not  purify  their  heart  and  be 
of  one  mind  (V.  iii.  ix.  7  f.)-  To  be  sure  Hermas 
knows  bishops  who  have  always  performed  the  duty 
entrusted  to  them  by  the  Church  blamelessly. 
They  have  received  the  journeying  servants  of  God 
hospitably,  seeking  out  and  caring  for  the  needy 
and  the  widows,  and  leading  a  pattern  life  and 
conversation  (S.  ix.  xxvii.,  cf.  V.  iii.  v.  1).  But 
the  prominence  he  gives  to  these  shows  that  there 
were  others.  And,  indeed,  he  had  complaints  to 
make  against  officials  of  the  Church,  who  vilely 
misused  the  office  entrusted  to  them  and  enriched 
themselves  on  what  was  intended  for  widows  and 
orphans  (S.  ix.  xxvi.  2). 

These  utterances  of  Hermas  must  be  cautiously 
employed,  and  especially  so  when  he  speaks  in 
general  terms  against  the  leaders.  The  "  pious  "  have 
always  had  some  fault  to  find  with  the  occupants  of 
church  office,  and  in  this  matter  Hermas  is  not  free 
from  partisanship.  The  charismatic,  who  is  also 
ascetic  and  confessor,  feels  himself  forced  to  oppose 
the  presbytery.  It  is  a  part  of  that  great  contest 
which  runs  through  the  whole  history  of  the  Church 
and  the  world  between  organisation  and  free  spiritual 
movement,  or,  as  it  has  been  recently  expressed,  the 
Spirit  under  restraint  and  the  Spirit  in  free  play. 
Hermas  gives  his  contempt  for  the  presbytery 
unmistakable  expression  in  that  sharply  ironic 
remark,  "  Let  the  presbyters  first  take  their  places," 
whereupon  the  Church  answers  him  shortly,  "  What 
I  tell  you,  that  do ;  be  seated "  (V.  iii.  i.  8).  He 
calls  the  leaders  of  the  Church  scathingly,  "  the  men 
of  the  first  place "  {TrpwroKaQeSpirai,  V.  III.  ix.  7),  and 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  337 

storms  against  the  stupidity  of  quarrels  as  to  pre- 
cedence (S.  VIII.  vii.  4).  We  cannot  avoid  the 
impression,  however,  that  with  his  prophetic  dignity 
and  pride  of  confession  he  was  hardly  a  competent 
judge  in  this  matter. 

Here  the  most  remarkable  thing  is  that  it  is  far 
from  clear  whether  the  matter  is  only  one  of  quarrels 
as  to  precedence,  or  whether  deeper  differences  do 
not  enter  into  it.  "  The  men  of  the  first  place,"  in 
V.  III.  ix.  7,  have  an  undoubted  resemblance  to  the 
false  prophet  pictured  in  M.  xi.,  who  sits  alone  on  the 
throne  while  liis  attentive  hearers  occupy  a  form  at 
his  feet,  and  whose  whole  conduct  Hermas  traces  to 
his   endeavours   to    secure   the  first   place  (12),  OeXei 

TrpcoTOKaOeSpiav     e-^eiv.  To      COllliect      this     with     the 

beginnings  of  the  gnostic  movement  is  a  view 
which,  especially  in  consideration  of  S.  ix.  22,  will 
always  have  something  to  be  said  for  it.  Of  actual 
false  doctrine  there  is  remarkably  little  said  in  Hermas, 
though  it  is  possible  to  put  this  interpretation  upon 
the  poison  mentioned  in  V.  iii.  ix.  7  {cf.  the  strange, 
foolish  doctrines,  S.  viii.  vi.  5,  ix.  3).  He  lacks  also 
the  understanding  which  would  enable  him  to  estimate 
the  dangers  of  gnostic  speculation.  He  is  concerned 
only  with  the  practical.  And  gnostic  teachers,  false 
prophets,  and  ecclesiastics  are  not  yet  clearly  separated 
in  his  view.  Everywhere  he  sees  among  them  un- 
christian ambition,  which  leads  to  suspicious  divisions. 
In  some  cases  it  is  still  harmless,  and  does  not  make 
an  end  of  their  Christianity.  "All  the  time  they  are 
believing  and  good,  only  they  hanker  after  privileges 
and  a  certain  honour"  (S.  viii.  vii.  4).     In  other  cases 

this    ambition,    which   manifests    itself  in   boldness, 

22 


338     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE    HEATHEN 

shamelessness,  and  talkativeness,  is  united  with 
covetousness  and  gluttony  (M.  xi.  12),  constituting 
a  twofold  danger  to  the  Church. 

Gluttony  seduces  (M.  xi.  13).  In  particular  these 
lying  prophets  prophesy  smooth  things  to  the  people 
(M.  XI.  2).  Covetousness  leads  to  imposture  (S.  ix. 
xix.  3),  as  we  have  already  more  than  once  learned. 
The  great  dangers  which  accompanied  the  mighty 
impulse  brought  by  Christianity  were  just  that,  when 
transferred  unduly  to  the  intellectual  domain,  it  led 
to  an  intolerable  self-conceit,  an  obtrusive  doctrinal 
readiness  (S.  ix.  xxii.  2).  With  persons  of  impure 
character  it  degenerated  even  into  immorality,  or 
at  least  into  the  impermissible  employment  of  their 
authority  for  selfish  ends,  while  in  worse  cases  it 
ended  in  lascivious  libertinism,  afterwards,  perhaps, 
palliated  by  antinomian  theories.  Hermas  does  not 
entirely  despair  of  such  people — this,  too,  a  good  sign 
of  the  strength  of  his  own  Christian  conscience  and 
the  Church's  belief  in  the  might  of  moral  good ;  they 
can  still  repent,  and  some  of  them  will  (S.  ix.  xix.  3, 
xxii.  3). 

i  The  main  point,  however,  both  for  Hermas  and 
for  us,  is  the  harm  that  all  this  caused  to  Church 
life  ;  schisms  still  kill  Christianity.  When  the  leaders 
themselves  quarrelled  about  precedence,  when  charis- 
inatics  rebelled  against  the  regular  Church  office,  when 
special  parties  within  the  Church  were  formed  round 
individual  teachers,  whether  gnostics,  false  prophets, 
or  ecclesiastics,  it  was  inevitable  that  the  sense  of 
communion,  the  spirit  of  brotherly  love,  the  unity 
should  be  very  severely  damaged.  Hence  we  are 
continually  coming  across  the  exhortation  to  preserve 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  339 

peace  in  mutual  services  and  discipline  {V.  iii.  ix. 
2,  10),  and  to  avoid  all  evil  report  which  disturbs 
peace  and  increases  confusion  (M.  ii.  1  £)•  Only 
when  there  is  peace  in  the  Church  can  the  Lord 
impart  further  revelations  to  her,  and  the  religious 
life  be  enriched  (V.  iii.  xii.  3).  The  building  of  the 
Church  is  to  have  the  outward  appearance  of  a  mono- 
lith (S.  IX.  ix.  7,  xiii.  5).  But  while  in  the  foundation, 
which  is  built  out  of  the  pattern  apostles,  bishops, 
teachers,  and  deacons,  this  is  a  magnificent  fact,  there 
is  still  much  wanting  to  make  the  upper  part  of  the 
tower  fit  exactly.  Many  stones  must  be  taken  out 
again  and  be  freshly  hewn.  The  call  to  unity  is  an 
essential  part  of  Hermas'  call  to  repentance. 

From  this  insistence  of  Hermas  we  can  learn  that 
there  was  present  in  the  Roman  Church  of  his  time, 
some  degree  of  the  same  ftiction-spirit  which  we  have 
already  seen  in  the  Corinthian  Church  of  Paul  to  be 
the  sad  accompaniment  of  an  excessive  development 
of  power. 

Hermas'  almost  complete  silence  in  regard  to  the 
devotional  life  of  the  Church  is  due  to  his  individualism. 
It  might  be  supposed  in  reading  his  works  that  there 
was  no  such  thing,  so  seldom  and  so  vaguely  does  he 
speak  of  it.  He  says  nothing  about  the  service  of 
the  word  or  the  Lord's  Supper.  It  is  almost  entirely 
of  the  devotional  exercises  on  the  part  of  individuals 
that  he  speaks.  But  the  way  in  which  he  judges 
these  is  significant  for  us :  it  throws  a  light  on  the 
question  how  far  moral  power  asserted  itself  in  public 
worship. 

Evidently  it  was  only  latterly  that  the  custom  had 
reached  the  Church  of  frequently  withdrawing  into 


340     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

solitude  for  a  time,  for  the  purpose  of  living  an  en- 
tirely ascetic  life.  There  were  definite  days  for  this 
called  Statio,  like  the  military  outposts  (S.  v.  i.  1). 
Fasting  and  prayer  were  closely  associate^->with  it. 
It  was  a  spiritual  exercise,  not  wjwt5ut  a  strong 
admixture  of  the  righteousness  oi  works.  The  in- 
tention was  to  please  God  thus,  to  do  penance  for 
past  sin  (V.  i.  ii.  1)  and  to  achieve  a  definite  reward  of 
special  honour  in  the  Kingdom  of  God.  Abstinence 
(ejKpdreia)  was,  as  such,  vcry  highly  prized  :  it  appears 
to  be  the  supplement  of  defective  positive  morality 
(V.  II.  iii.  If);  it  is  the  pre-condition  of  all  hearing 
of  prayer  (V.  iii.  x.  6),  and  of  further  reception  of 
revelations.  What  effects  were  attributed  to  prayer 
is  most  clearly  seen  in  the  parable  of  the  elm  and  the 
vine.  As  fruit  can  be  attributed  to  the  elm,  which 
is  not  a  fruit  tree,  but  serves  to  support  the  grape, 
enabling  it  to  rise  from  the  earth,  so  the  prayer  of 
the  grateful  poor  helps  the  generous  rich  and  sup- 
plies what  these  lack  in  Christian  perfection.  It 
is  a  remarkably  external  and  mechanical  method  of 
handling  moral  things. 

That,  too,  is  only  one  aspect  of  the  matter.  This 
way  of  thinking,  though  widely  spread  within  the 
Church,  does  not  remain  uncontradicted.  Here  we 
once  more  see  at  work  in  Hennas  that  prophetic 
spirit  which  represents  a  higher  stage  of  moral  per- 
ception, and  is  endeavouring  to  elevate  Christianity 
to  it.  Hernias  the  prophet  is  constrained  to  bear 
witness  against  himself,  the  representative  of  ordinary 
Christian  thinking.  With  all  his  eagerness,  however, 
for  uninterrupted  prayer  and  strict  fasting — his  own 
designation  of  himself  is  Hennas  the  Encratite  (V. 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  341 

I.  ii.  4), — he  must  still  warn  himself  and  others  against 
excess.  "See  to  it  that  thou  dost  not  through  much 
prayer  injure  thy  flesh  (thy  health) "  (V.  iii.  x.  7). 
"  Ye  know  not  how  to  fast  to  the  Lord,  and  your 
useless  fasting  is  not  a  (proper)  fast,  is  not  fasting  to 
Him.  God  will  not  have  such  empty  fasting ;  for 
with  it  you  make  no  righteousness."  In  the  place 
of  fasting  there  is  to  come  the  keeping  of  God's 
commandments,  the  remaining  free  from  every  wicked 
impulse,  the  trusting  God,  fearing  Him,  and  abstaining 
from  every  wicked  deed.  That  is  a  great  fast  and 
well-pleasing  to  God  (S.  v.  i.  3  if.).  And  if  they  are 
to  fast  in  the  strict  sense,  let  them  spare  from  their 
mouths  to  help  widows  and  orphans  and  the  needy. 
That  is  a  pleasant  sacrifice  for  God,  a  fast  which  he 
places  upon  record,  a  beautiful  joyous  service.  Blessed 
the  man  who  does  it  (S.  v.  iii.  7-9).  The  highest 
moral  thoughts,  as  they  are  only  occasionally  to  be 
found  in  the  prophets  of  the  old  covenant,  the  central 
thoughts  of  the  Gospel,  here  become  effective  as  dis- 
tinguished from  the  practice  of  the  Christianity  of  the 
time,  which  threatened  to  sink  to  a  sub- Christian  level. 

The  same  thing  holds  in  regard  to  baptism.  As  a 
sacrament,  if  we  may  use  the  word,  it  is  exceedingly 
highly  valued.  It  is  the  necessary  pre-condition  of  the 
attainment  of  all  salvation,  not  only  for  the  Christians 
who  are  now  living  (V.  iii.  ii.  4,  iii.  5,  S.  ix.  xii.  4), 
but  also  for  the  holy  men  of  the  old  covenant  (S.  ix. 
xvi.),  and  even  for  the  angels  (S.  ix.  xii.  6,  8).  It 
blots  out  all  past  sins.  This  is  the  reason  why  the 
question  as  to  the  possibility  of  a  second  repentance 
after  baptism  is  so  burning  and  so  much  discussed  (V. 

II.  ii.  4  f.,  III.  V.  5,  M.  IV.  iii.  1,  S.  viii.  6-11).     But  the 


342     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

very  fact  of  these  questions  being  brought  up  shows 
us  how  far  Christianity  was  from  resting  quietly  with 
the  grace  of  baptism.  Hennas  is  always  inculcating 
anew  the  moral  duties  which  this  same  baptism  lays 
upon  the  Christian :  he  should  sin  no  more,  but  dwell 
in  holiness  (M.  iv.  iii.  2),  be  simple,  not  bear  a  grudge, 
lay  aside  wickedness,  and  live  in  unity  (S.  ix.  xxxi.  4). 
The  seal  of  baptism  must  be  preserved  unbroken,  or 
the  sinner  must  repent  (S.  viii.  vi.  3) ;  the  white 
baptismal  garment  must  be  kept  unstained. 

Baptism  demands  as  its  complement  the  exercise 
of  all  Christian  virtues  (S.  ix.  xiii.).  The  Christians, 
as  those  baptised  in  the  name  of  the  Son  of  God,  are 
holy  (V.  I.  i.  9,  iii.  2,  iii.  iii.  3,  vi.  2,  viii.  8.  9,  iv.  iii. 
6),  but  they  have  still  sin  (V.  i.  i.  9,  ii.  ii.  4,  5,  iii. 
viii.  11).  The  call  to  repentance  is  directed  to  the 
saints  :  Cleanse  ye  from  your  sins  and  do  righteous- 
ness. Not  on  the  ground  of  baptism,  but  only  under 
the  discipline  of  the  angel  of  repentance  does  Hermas 
know  himself  to  be  free  from  shortcomings  (S.  x.  ii. 
1  f ).  It  is  no  exception  to  this  rule  when  we  find 
Hermas  assuming  the  existence  of  Christians  who 
have  preserved  their  childish  innocence  all  life  long 
(S.  IX.  xxix.) ;  the  most  we  can  see  in  that  is  only  a 
want  of  psychological  depth  of  vision,  not  a  neglect 
of  moral  requirement.  The  innocence  of  children 
set  forth  in  the  Gospel  as  pattern  for  the  disciples  of 
Jesus  remains  in  Hermas  also  the  ideal  of  every 
Christian  (M.  ii.  1.). 

K      Moral  strengthening  is  also  the  ground  element  of 

(the  common  edification.     It  is  true  there  were  also 

dangers  in  the  devotional  domain,  e.g.,  in  the  nightly 

assemblies   for   prayer  which  were  taken  part  in  by 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  343 

members  of  both  sexes,  and  inspired  Hernias'  fancy- 
in  the  description  contained  in  S.  ix.  xi.  7.  It  was 
in  these  that  the  well-known  heathen  suspicions  took 
their  rise.  But  we  have  nowhere  any  proof  that  these 
were  in  any  way  grounded.  On  the  contrary,  if  any- 
thing can  be  concluded  from  the  peculiar  character 
of  Hermas  about  the  divine  services  of  the  Church, 
they  were  permeated  throughout  by  a  moral  spirit. 
Probably  there  was  an  admixture  of  much  that  was 
unevangelical  in  the  idea  of  influencing  God  by  un- 
interrupted fasting  and  prayer.  But  the  public 
repentance,  the  confession  which  the  sinner,  as  we 
saw  in  the  case  of  Hermas  himself,  made  before  the 
whole  Chiu'ch,  was  at  least  a  very  wholesome  disci- 
pline. It  is  likely  that  in  the  meetings  for  edifica- 
tion revelations  of  a  piu'ely  eschatological  kind  played 
a  part  {cf.  V.  i.  iii.  4).  But  it  is  worthy  of  remark 
that  Hermas  communicates  to  us  only  the  brief  con- 
clusion of  one  such,  "  the  last  words  were  useful  and 
pleasing  to  us,"  "  the  preceding,  however  hard  and 
difficult,  were  only  for  the  heathen  and  apostates " 
(V.  I.  iii.  3,  iv.  2).  The  other  revelations  which 
he  offers  (V.  ii.  2,  iii.  9)  relate  to  the  moral 
life  of  the  Church  and  its  defects.  The  entire 
preaching  of  Hermas  is,  as  the  commandments  in 
particular  show,  less  based  on  eschatology  than  on 
morality. 

This  could  not  have  been  peculiar  to  himself. 
The  warning,  so  opposed  to  his  own  eager  desire  for 
continually-renewed  revelations,  against  a  curiosity 
which  will  know  everything  (S.  ix.  ii.  6  f.),  is 
certainly  also  to  be  interpreted  in  the  sense  that 
such    apocalyptic    as    desires   to    dive   into    all    the 


344     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

secrets  of  God  shall  be  repressed  in  the  common 
edification.  In  this  sense  new  significance  is  given 
to  his  sharp  combating  of  a  wilHngness  to  be  asked 
questions  on  the  part  of  the  prophetic  spirit  after  the 
manner  of  heathen  mantic.  The  Spirit  of  God  is  no 
oracle,  but  of  Himself  speaks  through  the  prophet's 
mouth,  and  punishes  the  lying  spirit  so  that  he  is 
dumb  (M.  XI.  9,  13,  cf.  1  Cor.  xiv.  24). 

Besides  the  Church's  divine  services  there  are 
evidently  meetings  of  smaller  circles  for  edification. 
Such  is  the  assembly  of  righteous  men  (M.  xi.  9), 
which  Hermas  places  in  contrast  to  the  audience  of 
doubters  gathered  round  the  false  prophet,  and  in 
which  he  lays  the  scene  of  the  above  exposure  of  the 
lying  spirit.  A  private  assembly  of  this  kind  is 
probably  to  be  thought  of  when  Hermas  is  com- 
missioned to  communicate  the  revelation  which  he 
has  received  first  of  all  to  the  presbyters  who  formed 
the  management  of  the  Church  (V.  ii.  iv.  3).  It  was 
in  such  meetings  that  prophets  like  Hermas  spoke ; 
in  the  Church  services  this  was  perhaps  no  longer  the 
case.  There  they  delivered  their  revelations,  their 
words  of  chastisement  and  exhortation,  whether  in 
free  utterance  (V.  iii.  viii.  11,  iv.  iii.  6)  or  from  notes 
(V.  II.  iv.  3,  cf.  2  Clem,  xix.)  makes  no  difference. 
From  these  meetings  for  edification,  in  which  also 
the  earlier  writings  were  read,  Hermas  probably 
acquired  his  knowledge  of  the  Old  Testament 
wisdom  and  proverb  literature,  the  Teaching  of  the 
Apostles,  and  similar  early  Christian  literature,  which 
gave  the  decisive  direction  to  his  whole  moral  thought 
and  sentiment.  We  are  justified  in  assuming  that 
the  Christian  Church  did  not  leave  the  formation  of 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  345 

the  moral  judgment  of  its  members  to  the  choice  of 
the  individual,  to  his  more  or  less  zealous  participa- 
tion in  the  public  services  and  private  meetings,  but, 
as  a  Church,  definitely  regulated  this  important  point 
of  Christian  education. 

In  two  passages  Hernias  throws  some  light  on 
Christian  instruction ;  it  is  to  be  given  to  the  neo- 
phytes (V.  III.  V.  4),  and  a  definite  person,  Grapte, 
probably  a  widow  in  the  technical  sense,  a  church- 
worker,  is  to  impart  it  to  widows  and  orphans 
(V.  II.  iv.  3). 

It  is  remarkable  that  there  is  not  a  word  said  of 
any  instruction  of  the  young  in  the  special  sense  for 
all  children  of  Christians.  Evidently  this  was  con- 
sidered to  be  the  business  of  the  Christian  family,  of 
the  Christian  head  of  a  house.  Hermas  himself  is 
brought  to  account  because  of  his  neglect  on  this 
point  (V.  I.  iii.  1).  Only  where  there  was  no  head  of 
the  household,  in  the  case  of  widows  and  orphans, 
did  the  Church  intervene  in  the  person  of  some  elder 
specially  appointed  for  this  purpose.  Here,  too,  the 
eschatological  element  has  its  place.  Grapte  received 
for  her  instruction  the  one  specimen  of  revelation 
set  down  by  Hermas.  The  main  material,  however, 
is  morality.  The  neophytes  shall  be  instructed  to 
do  good  {ayaOoTToieiv).  The  nature  of  this  instruction 
is  revealed  to.  us  by  single  passages  of  a  catechetical 
nature  introduced  by  Hermas,  especially  in  the  com- 
mandments. Hermas  is  here  evidently  directly 
dependent  on  older  literature  of  the  style  of  the 
Teaching  of  the  Apostles.  This  shows  how  constant 
and  regular  this  style  of  instruction  was.  His  com- 
mandments were  employed  for  catechetical  purposes 


346     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

in  the  Church  of  the  Christian  empire  two  to  three 
centuries  later. 

The  instruction  commences  with  the  behef  in  God, 
the  One,  the  Creator  and  Preserver  of  all.  But  from 
this  belief  there  immediately  follows  the  requirement 
to  exercise  abstinence  in  the  fear  of  God  (M.  i.  2), 
not  in  the  encratite  sense,  but  in  the  sense  of  keeping 
far  from  all  wicked  works  like  adultery  and  fornica- 
tion, drunkenness,  rioting,  gluttony,  luxury,  pomp, 
arrogance,  lying,  calumny,  hypocrisy,  nursing  of  a 
grudge,  and  calumnious  speech  (M.  viii.  3.  fF.).  To 
the  commandment  of  abstinence  there  are  attached 
the  commandments  of  simplicity,  innocence,  and 
honour.  Under  these  are  included  the  forbidding 
of  calumny,  the  exhortation  to  communicativeness 
(M.  II.),  the  commandment  to  love  the  truth,  in  con- 
nection with  which  lying  and  dishonesty  in  business  are 
spoken  of  (INI.  iii.),  to  be  chaste  (with  the  forbidding  of 
evil  lust,  M.  IV.),  and  to  forbear  (JNI.  v.).  We  already 
saw  that  Hermas  lays  the  main  stress  on  the  in- 
ward intention,  and  never  tires  of  inculcating  upon 
Christians  faith,  abstinence,  simplicity,  innocence, 
honour,  righteousness,  content,  truth,  knowledge, 
unity,  love.  The  practical  exercise  of  Christian  works 
of  love  is  conceived  by  him  to  follow  naturally,  even 
as  a  worldly  and  heathen  intention  leads  to  sinful 
deeds,  to  theft,  lying,  robbery,  false  witness,  ambition, 
lusts,  deceit,  boasting  and  the  like. 

In  the  instruction  of  catechumens,  the  practical 
proofs  of  Christian  intention  were  more  strongly 
emphasised.  The  new  Christians  were  exhorted  "  to 
stand  by  the  widows,  to  look  after  orphans  and  needy, 
to    deliver  the  servants  of  God   out  of  need,  to  be 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  347 

hospitable,  to  set  themselves  in  opposition  to  no  one, 
to  be  quiet,  to  be  humble  before  all  men,  to  honour 
the  old,  to  practise  righteousness,  to  maintain  brother- 
hood, to  endure  scoffing,  to  be  forbearing,  to  comfort 
oppressed  souls,  not  to  desert  people  who  have  erred 
in  faith,  but  to  convert  them  and  make  them  cheer- 
ful, to  exhort  sinners,  not  to  oppress  debtors  and  the 
necessitous,  and  everything  similar  "  (M.  viii.  10). 
The  collection  is  remarkable ;  still  more  the  order. 
Dissimilar  things  are  joined  together,  and  similar  are 
separated.  But  we  everywhere  recognise  clearly  how 
it  was  especially  the  works  of  pitying  love  that  were 
laid  to  the  hearts  of  young  Christians,  and  then  the 
giving  up  of  insistence  on  their  own  rights.  The 
thoughts  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  touching  lo\  e 
of  enemies  are  here  made  the  chief  authority. 

These  thoughts,  however,  come  to  expression  not 
only  in  instruction  but  also  in  life,  ^^^e  can  draw 
that  conclusion  at  once  from  the  fact  that  Hernias 
has  so  little  to  say  on  the  point.  He  evidently 
judged  it  imnecessary  to  go  into  detail.  In  the  same 
way  he  took  it  for  granted  that  the  sins  enumerated 
in  the  usual  way  in  the  catechism,  required  among  the 
Christians  of  the  Church  no  special  explanation. 
That  a  Christian  stole,  pilfered,  lied,  and  bore  false 
witness  was  evidently  considered  something  rare, 
while  many  well-off  Christians  did  not  consider  it  sin 
to  allow  themselves  a  luxurious,  merry  life,  and  to 
make  a  great  show  with  their  riches.  There  was  no 
want  of  attention  to  liberal  giving,  but  there  was 
quarrelling  as  to  places  of  honour.  Hermas  is  con- 
cerned to  show  that  the  one  depends  on  the  other, 
that  where  the  right  intention  is  wanting  the  practice 


348     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

of  Christianity  must  suffer.  But  just  thereby  he 
unconsciously  gives  all  the  more  valuable  witness 
for  the  actual  exercise  of  Christian  morality  in  the 
Church. 

More  important  still  is  the  second  consideration. 
An  occasional  utterance  of  Hermas  very  well  worth 
noting  shows  us  that  the  commandments  were 
not  handled  as  dead  catechetical  material,  as  require- 
ments which  it  was  easy  to  set  up  and  which  sounded 
very  beautiful,  but  whose  impracticability  relieved  the 
hearers  from  any  endeavours  to  realise  them.  Rather 
with  the  catechumens  it  was  strongly  insisted  that 
this  practical  side  of  Christianity  must  also  be  taken 
seriously,  and  the  commandments  of  God,  in  all  their 
compass,  be  truly  fulfilled. 

In  the  building  which  symbolises  the  Church, 
Hermas  sees  stones  thrown  away  from  the  tower 
lying  near  the  water,  without,  however,  being  able  to 
roll  into  it.  These  are  they  who  have  received  the 
word  and  would  have  themselves  baptized  in  the 
name  of  the  Lord  ;  but  when  they  become  con- 
scious of  the  holiness  of  truth,  they  alter  their 
intention  and  follow  their  evil  lusts  again  (V.  iii.  vii.  8). 
Here  Christian  catechumens  are  meant.  They  have 
been  attracted  by  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel ;  they 
have  formed  the  decision  to  be  Christians,  to  join  this 
community  where  such  a  message  of  comfort,  such 
magnificent  promises  are  proclaimed ;  they  have 
already  notified  themselves  for  baptism.  Now  they 
are  given  instruction,  and  here  it  is  made  clear  to 
them  what  the  truth,  what  Christianity,  calls  for. 
It  is  something  holy  ;  it  calls  for  a  great  renunciation, 
the  complete  rupture   with   their  whole  former  life. 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  349 

Not  only  must  they  avoid  certain  coarse  sins  like 
theft,  fornication,  adultery,  murder,  and  others  ;  not 
only  must  they  take  upon  themselves  all  sorts  of 
brotherly  duties  like  visitation  of  the  sick,  hos- 
pitality, and  so  forth,  but  they  are  also  enjoined  to 
alter  their  whole  trend  of  thought  and  to  renounce 
everji:hing  that  up  till  now  has  made  life  dear  to 
them.  This  requirement  is  too  severe.  So  they  turn 
aside  and  fall  back  again  into  their  earlier  life. 
There  is  hardly  one  clearer  proof  of  the  energy  with 
which  the  Christian  Church  had  struggled  after  the 
reaUsation  of  its  moral  ideal  than  this  witness  of 
those  who  draw  back.  It  is  too  hard  for  us  !  Would 
they  have  acted  thus  if  they  had  seen  that  the 
requirements,  as  set  forth  in  the  catechism,  were  not 
intended  so  seriously  ?  Would  the  strong  impulse 
towards  propaganda  among  men  so  nearly  won,  have 
been  renounced,  if  the  slightest  yielding  in  these 
things  could  have  made  it  possible  to  keep  them  ?  Of 
theoretical  hesitation  and  dogmatic  scruples  not  a 
word  is  here  said.  It  was  the  unconditional  mainten- 
ance of  the  moral  ideal  in  its  entire  holiness  which 
worked  terror  amid  the  undecided  catechumens.  Their 
withdrawal  and  the  fact  that  no  attempt  was  made  to 
prevent  it,  show  at  once  how  seriously  this  matter 
was  taken  in  the  Christian  Church. 

We  have  this  conclusion  confirmed  by  the  actual 
circumstances  in  the  various  moral  provinces  of  the 
Christian  life. 

The  holiness  of  marriage  was  one  of  the  foremost 
moral  principles  of  Christianity.  It  is  rightly  credited 
with  having  first  awakened  the  feeling  that  not  only 
adultery,  but  sexual  intercourse  outside  of  marriage, 


350     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

fornication,  is  sin.  It  is  remarkable  how  seldom 
this  is  mentioned  in  Hermas.  Would  he  have  judged 
this  less  strictly  than  other  Christians  ?  That  would 
be  quite  unlike  the  man,  and  is  contradicted  by  the 
passages  where  he  does  speak  of  it  (M.  iv.  i.  1,  viii.  3). 
We  can  explain  his  silence  only  by  supposing  that 
little  occasion  was  given  for  warnings  against 
fornication.  The  actual  position  must  have  been  in 
accordance  with  the  demands  of  moral  teaching. 
Nor  is  there  in  Hermas  any  mention  of  many  other 
sins  of  heathenism  which  go  hand  in  hand  with 
fornication  and  have  their  place  in  the  Jewish  Christian 
moral  catechism.  This  evidently  lay  beyond  the  field 
of  vision  of  the  Christian  Church  of  his  time. 

It  is  solely  the  question  of  divorce  which  interests 
Hermas,  and,  if  we  may  say  so,  that  aspect  of  the 
question  which  is  connected  with  ecclesiastical  law. 
Here  the  definite  Christian  principle  contained  in 
the  Lord's  saying  was  in  direct  opposition  to  the 
custom  of  the  non-Christian  world.  In  the  Judaism 
of  the  time  and  in  paganism,  divorce  for  the  most 
trifling  reasons  was  something  quite  usual.  Christ 
declares  the  indissolubility  of  marriage  (Luke  xvi.  18). 
Paul  maintains  the  commandment  in  all  its  strictness 
(1  Cor.  vii.  10  f.).  Hermas  already  presupposes  as 
ground  of  divorce  the  one  exception  admitted  in 
Matt.  V.  32,  xix.  9,  adultery.  But  not  less  rigor- 
ously than  the  Apostle  does  he  maintain  the  duty 
of  the  innocent  party  to  remain  single,  to  be  ready 
to  be  reconciled  at  all  times  (M.  iv.  i.  4-8).  Hermas 
appears  to  speak  as  if  there  was  an  actual  case  of 
adultery  in  which  some  Christian  woman  was 
involved  (4),  and  one  might  almost  think  it  his  own 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  351 

wife.  But  he  quietly  classes  heathenism  as  adultery 
[ev  /noi-xeiu  Tiiu),  ill  order  to  represent  this  also  as  ground 
of  divorce  (9).  This  is  just  what  suits  his  own 
circumstances  ;  all  his  discussions  are  directed  upon 
it.  So  we  lack  in  Hermas  all  positi\'e  proof  of  the 
actual  happening  of  adultery  within  the  Christian 
Church.  What  he  scourges,  what  he  warns  against 
when  he  speaks  of  adultery  is,  as  the  first  of  his 
confessions  showed  us,  the  wicked  impulse,  not  yet 
the  accomplished  deed. 

We  must  not  fail  to  observe  that  the  whole  life  of 
the  time  offered  great  dangers  in  this  direction  ;  recall 
only  the  bath  scene  in  the  first  vision.  Even  the 
Church  life  was  not  entirely  beyond  it.  To  be  sure 
the  picture  which  Hermas  gives  of  his  nightly  presence 
with  the  virgins  who  watched  the  tower  (S.  ix.  11) 
is  meant  quite  harmlessly ;  it  is  only  personified 
virtues  who  say  to  him,  "  You  will  spend  this  night 
with  us  as  a  brother,  not  as  a  man."  But  playing 
with  these  things  is  dangerous.  And  Hermas  him- 
self teaches  us  that  an  impure  fancy  is  to  be  estimated 
equally  with  an  impure  walk. 

We  must  note  that  Hermas — in  sharp  opposition 
to  hyper-ascetic  tendencies — commends  the  continual 
and  loving  thinking  of  one's  own  wife  as  the  best 
means  of  protection  against  such  seducing  thoughts 
{M.  IV.  i.  1 ).  Also  in  the  then  much-discussed  question 
of  the  right  of  a  second  marriage  Hermas  takes  his 
stand  along  with  Paul  (1  Cor.  vii.  39),  admitting 
the  right  unconditionally  although  he  gives  the 
preference  to  remaining  single  (INI.  iv.  4).  So  far  he 
is  not  at  all  encratite,  however  fond  he  is  of  calling 
himself  6  eyKpank  (V.  I.  ii.  4-).     Accordingly  I  do  not 


352     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

believe  that  in  other  passages  he  would  have  preached 
the  renunciation  of  marriage. 

Naturally  the  married  life  of  these  Christians  was 
not  always  in  every  respect  ideal.  Hermas  knew 
that  from  his  own  experience.  In  his  own  naive  way 
he  shows  us  how  marital  differences  arise.  The  dis- 
content of  the  one  partner  (here  it  is  to  be  noted  that 
he  places  the  wife  first  in  accordance  with  his  own 
experience)  finds  occasion  for  bitterness  in  the  most 
trifling  things  of  daily  life,  food,  a  meaningless  word, 
a  friend,  the  purse,  or  anything  equally  trivial.  The 
bitterness  increases  to  passion,  which  becomes  anger 
and  lasting  rancour  (M.  v.  2).  Here  Hermas  combats 
not  only  the  evil  tongue  of  his  wife  (V.  ii.  ii.  3),  but 
especially  the  spirit  of  discontent  (o^v-^oXia),  which  he 
makes  responsible  for  everything  (M.  v.).  We  re- 
cognise here  again  both  the  inwardness  of  his  method, 
which  always  aims  at  the  intention,  and  the  strength 
of  his  moral  consciousness,  which  always  holds  un- 
conditionally by  loyalty  to  marriage  and  does  not  let 
itself  become  embittered  or  strives  to  fight  down  the 
rising  bitterness  (V.  ii.  iii.  1). 

Of  the  position  of  woman  there  is  practically 
nothing  said.  AVhen  Hermas  speaks  only  of  an 
assembly  of  righteous  men  (JNI.  xi.  9),  we  cannot 
conclude  that  women  took  no  active  share  in  the 
divine  services  and  meetings  for  edification ;  at  most 
it  can  indicate  only  that  they  did  not  take  any  part 
in  speaking  and  praying.  Just  from  the  fact  that 
Hermas  speaks  always  in  the  masculine,  and  makes 
no  special  mention  of  women,  it  follows  that  he 
considered  them  in  moral  relations  to  stand  on  exactly 
the  same  level  as  the  men,  and  the  name  of  "  sister," 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  353 

aSe\(p^  (V.  II.  ii.  3),  expresses  the  full  equality  of 
Christian  women  in  the  religious  aspect.  We  already 
saw  further  that  the  instruction  of  widows  and 
orphans  lay  in  the  hands  of  a  woman  (V.  ii.  iv.  3). 

The  discipline  of  children  was  held  to  be  an  import- 
ant duty  of  the  Christian  household.  It  extended 
in  Roman  law  to  the  sons  and  daughters  already 
grown  up.  Hernias'  own  family  bears  witness  that 
in  this  domain  not  everything  was  in  order.  But  the 
way  in  which  Hennas  is  brought  to  account  for  this 
neglect  of  his  duties  as  head  of  a  household  is  a  proof 
that  the  Church  felt  such  a  thing  to  be  an  injury  done 
herself  and  a  violation  of  the  absolute  and  requisite 
morality  of  Christians. 

There  does  not  seem  to  have  been  wanting,  either, 
the  feeling  for  outward  order  and  cleanliness  in 
Christian  houses.  When  Hermas  pictures  to  us  how 
beautifully  white  the  tower  is  and  how  its  surround- 
ings are  swept  and  cleansed  to  dazzling  whiteness 
(S.  IX.  X.  2  f.),  there  certainly  come  in  thoughts  of 
spiritual  purity  {cf,  S.  x.  iii.  2,  and  KaQaplXeiv,  V.  ii.  iii. 
1,  III.  ii.  2,  viii.  11,  ix.  8,  iv.  iii.  4,  and  freq.).  But 
inward  and  outward  are  evidently  to  correspond,  and 
the  vividness  of  the  picture  lets  us  see  that  what 
Hennas  had  in  view  was  the  daily  life,  although 
perhaps  in  the  careless  ordering  of  his  own  house  it 
was  the  contrary  picture  which  had  stamped  itself  on 
his  mind. 

The  slaves  also  belong  to  the  house.  That  there 
were  slaves  among  the  Christians  of  Rome,  although 
perhaps  not  in  such  enormous  numbers  as  is  some- 
times thought,  is  self-evident,  and  has  been  mentioned 

already.     It  is  probable   that   such    Christian  slaves 

23 


354     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

were  often  uncomfortable  enough  in  heathen  houses. 
Hermas  mentions  once  by  way  of  comparison  that 
the  heathen  beat  their  slaves  when  they  deny  their 
master.  That  may  be  the  actual  experience  of 
Christian  slaves.  Because,  though  the  ancient  view 
admitted  slaves  the  private  exercise  of  religion,  it 
must  not  come  at  all  in  conflict  with  the  religion  of 
the  family.  The  exclusiveness  of  the  Christian  con- 
fession could  indeed  appear  as  denial  of  the  master 
of  the  house,  who,  at  the  same  time,  was  the  priest 
of  the  family  worship.  Thus  there  might  be  cases 
where  the  Christian  Church  had  to  effect  the  separa- 
tion of  her  members  from  heathen  masters  in  order 
to  protect  their  Christian  faith.  Possibly  Hermas 
is  thinking  of  that  when  he  mentions  the  release 
of  servants  of  God  from  oppression  (M.  viii.  10). 
Except  in  cases  of  an  oppression  of  faith  fraught  with 
danger  to  the  soul,  the  Christian  Church  took  no 
exception  to  the  slave  condition  of  many  of  her 
members.  Here  there  is  revealed  the  wonderful 
power  of  religion  to  equalise  social  conditions. 

But  were  there  also  slaves  in  Christian  houses  ? 
Hermas  gives  us  no  proof  of  this,  though  also  no 
disproof.  That  Hermas  had  to  thank  Christianity, 
his  mistress,  for  his  freedom,  is  nowhere  said  {cf.  V. 
1.  i.  1).  Emancipation  was  the  reward  of  good  service 
(S.  V.  ii.  2,  7).  We  should  put  too  much  into  the 
analogy  just  mentioned,  were  we  to  conclude  that 
only  heathens  possessed  slaves.  But  we  may  well 
find  in  it  an  indication  that  the  severe  treatment  of 
slaves,  their  terrible  chastisement,  was  considered 
something  heathenish.  Christianity  did  not  alter  the 
outward  conditions  of  life,  but  it  filled  every  relation- 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  355 

ship  with  a  new  spirit.  A  Christian  master,  as  we 
have  clearly  seen  in  Paul's  directions  to  Philemon, 
could  no  longer  treat  his  slaves  as  the  heathen  did, 
even  when  the  slave  himself  was  an  unbeliever.  In 
that  case  he  was  to  be  considered  by  the  master  as 
an  immortal  soul,  whom  he  must  win  for  his  I^ord. 
There  would  be  still  less  danger  of  cruelty  when  the 
slave  was  a  Christian  and  a  brother  in  the  Lord. 
If  Hermas  does  not  enter  upon  this  question,  then 
we  shall  again  be  able  to  conclude  only  that  the  actual 
moral  circumstances  in  the  Church  offered  nothing 
particular  to  record. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  social  intercourse  in 
connection  with  the  secularisation  of  Christianity. 
Here  there  was  real  ground  for  misgiving  in  the 
freedom  and  ease  with  which  Christians  mingled  with 
heathen,  and  even  in  their  own  house  suffered  them- 
selves to  imitate  heathen  luxury  and  extravagance. 

There  was,  however,  as  it  seems,  another  and  worse 
danger,  the  risk  of  absorption  in  trade  interests  and 
dishonest  business  dealings.  We  have  already  had 
this  danger  exemplified  in  Hermas  himself,  and  have 
seen  that  we  must  think  of  the  Church  as  in  great 
measure  constituted  of  merchants  and  artisans  of  the 
middle  class.  They  maintained  themselves  by  the 
work  of  their  hands,  and  their  wages  were  scanty. 
At  that  time,  too,  the  small  shop  and  the  trade  were 
sorely  held  down  by  the  factories  of  the  great  slave- 
holders. No  wonder  that  there  were  troubles  of  all 
kinds,  and  that  the  Christian  with  all  his  piety  was 
ever  more  and  more  deeply  entangled  in  worldly 
affairs.  Hermas  is  quite  full  of  the  dangers  that 
await  Christians  here. 


356     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

Now  the  whole  commerce  of  the  period  was  based 
on  an  unscrupulous  and  inexcusable  system  of  fraud 
and  imposture.  How  was  the  individual  Christian 
to  avoid  this  ?  The  Christian  Church,  to  be  sure, 
maintained  that  here  too  the  Christian  should  be 
distinguished  from  the  heathen.  But  how  difficult 
it  was  to  accomplish  this  is  shown  us  by  the  astonish- 
ment with  which  Hermas  receives  the  exhortation 
(M.  III.  4). 

It  was  indeed  worse,  when  within  the  Church 
management  and  the  Church  poor  administration, 
cases  of  embezzlement  occurred,  as  we  must  grant 
they  did.  These  too,  however,  are  traceable  to  the 
same  spirit  which  led  to  dishonesty  in  commercial 
affairs.  The  new  moral  spirit  of  Christianity  had 
evidently  not  permeated  the  whole  domain,  as  was 
necessary  and  desirable.  But  that  this  was  felt — and 
Hermas  shows  this  clearly — is  a  sign  that  improve- 
ment was  approaching. 

Hermas  is  specially  displeased  with  the  really  well- 
off,  the  rich  in  the  Church.  He  cannot  deny  that 
even  among  them  there  are  Christians  of  irreproach- 
able morality,  and  when  he  counts  their  wealth  as  in 
itself  a  fault,  he  betrays  a  very  one-sided  and  not 
truly  moral  method  of  judgment. 

But  he  may  have  been  to  a  certain  extent  right. 
Probably  it  was  very  often  just  with  the  rich  that 
the  fear  of  confession  and  separation  from  the  Church 
originated  (V.  iii.  vi.  5),  while  on  the  other  hand  they 
would  be  likely  to  supply  the  impulse  to  secularisa- 
tion. He  speaks  of  one  who  boasts  of  his  riches  even 
among  Christians  (V.  i.  i.  8).  Riches  entangle  in  the 
affairs  of  this  world  (M.  x.  i.  4,  S.  ix.  xx.  1  f ),  entice 


TRANSITION  TO   CATHOLICISM  357 

to  covetoiisness  (JNI.  xii.  i.  2),  harden  against  the  poor 
(V.  III.  ix.  6),  and  steel  the  heart  against  the  percep- 
tion of  divine  things  (INI.  xi.  4). 

Hence  Hernias  treats  earthly  possessions  as  in 
reality  a  worrying  burden.  He  is  himself  quite 
happy  because  confiscation  has  eased  him  of  it.  Now 
for  the  first  time  he  is  useful  to  his  Lord  {euy^ptja-To^, 
perhaps  a  play  on  the  word  :  a  good  Christian, 
V.  III.  vi.  7).  So  all  the  others  who  are  rich  must  be 
deprived  of  their  wealth  (6).  Yet  it  is  remarkable 
that  he  limits  this  deprivation  to  the  lessening 
of  their  property.  He  does  not  desire  its  entire 
removal ;  with  what  remains  they  are  to  do  good 
(S.  IX.  XXX.  5). 

Hermas  thereby  recognises  a  positive  moral  sig- 
nificance attaching  to  earthly  possession.  In  spite 
of  his  little  valuation  of  property,  he  is  no  pauperist, 
and  his  ideal  by  no  means  one  of  communism.  Such 
an  ideal  would  render  impossible  what  Hermas  con- 
siders the  most  important  expression  of  practical 
Christianity. 

We  have  already  seen  that  the  care  of  the  poor  and 
of  journeying  brethren  was  organised  by  the  Church. 
It  is  clear,  however,  that  the  exercise  of  private 
generosity  and  hospitality  was  not  anticipated. 
Much  too  often  in  Hernias  there  are  repeated 
exhortations  to  the  zealous  exercising  of  these 
Christian  duties.  The  only  question  is  how  private 
and  public  charity  were  differentiated. 

For  wandering  prophets  and  teachers,  and  such 
brethren  as  were  otherwise  quite  unknown  in  the 
place,  provision  was  certainly  made  by  the  Church  ; 
but  when  a  man  had  an  acquaintance  or  a  commercial 


358     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

friend,  it  was  certainly  expected  that  he  should  stay 
with  his  friend.  In  certain  circumstances  that  may 
have  made  very  great  demands  on  individuals. 
/Yet  we  find  great  readiness  to  show  hospitality  to 
the  servants  of  God  expressly  recognised  even  in  the 
case  of  Christians  whose  behaviour  was  not  other- 
wise beyond  reproach  (S.  viii.  x.  3). 

Things  were  otherwise  in  the  matter  of  benevolence. 
Church  relief  was  naturally  confined  to  the  Church 
members,  the  Christian  widows  and  orphans,  and 
necessitous  Christians.  Now  the  Church  in  Rome 
was  certainly  large  enough  to  have  concealed  in  it 
sufficient  poverty  and  misery  to  open  a  wide  field 
for  private  generosity.  But  we  may  assume  that 
Christian  charity  was  extended  to  those  who  were 
not  within  the  Church.  True,  it  is  always  said  that 
the  Christian  must  serve  the  saints ;  he  who  does 
that  in  simplicity  is  certain  of  everlasting  life  with 
God  (M.  II.  6).  Also  in  the  case  of  the  widows  and 
orphans  especially  recommended  to  support  (S.  i.  8), 
we  shall  think  of  Christians  first.  But  when  Hermas 
speaks  in  praise  of  a  class  of  Christians  who,  without 
discord,  always  rejoicing  in  their  relations  with  the 
servants  of  God  and  full  of  Christian  virtues,  had 
ever  pity  for  all  and  shared  their  earnings  with  every 
one  without  reproach  and  without  delay  (S.  ix. 
xxiv.  2),  he  shows  clearly  that  Christian  love,  in 
spite  of  all  its  external  limitation  to  the  fellowship 
of  faith,  did  not  let  itself  be  hindered  from  being 
active  in  every  place  where  necessity  and  misery 
called  for  help.  It  belonged  to  the  most  general 
catechetical  rules  that  the  servants  of  God  were  to  be 
purchased  out  of  oppression.     Here  not  only  slaves 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  359 

are  to  be  thought  of,  but  also  prisoners  and  Christians 
condemned  to  penal  servitude.  But  it  is  further 
required  that  every  one  is  to  be  relieved  from  distress, 
and  it  is  expressly  emphasised  that  necessity  and 
want  in  daily  life  can  often  be  as  painful  as  prison 
and  drive  many  to  death.  Accordingly  he  who  does 
not  help  one  whose  need  he  knows,  is  guilty  of  murder 
(S.  X.  iv.  2  f.).  It  even  seems  that  this  large  support 
extended  to  necessitous  non-Christians  was  a  means 
of  propaganda.  At  least  the  counsel  "to  purchase 
souls  out  of  oppression"  (S.  i.  8),  can  be  understood 
to  mean  that  such  people  shall  be  won  through 
material  support  for  Christianity  and  so  for  everlasting 
life.  The  context  of  the  parable  which  treats  of 
belonging  to  the  kingdoin  of  God  or  to  the  kingdom 
of  the  prince  of  the  world,  confirms  this  explanation. 

The  exhortation  to  do  good  is  naturally  directed  in 
the  first  place  to  the  well-to-do  in  the  Church  ;  they 
are  to  perceive  that  God  has  given  them  riches  only 
to  the  end  that  they  may  help  the  needy  therewith. 

Hermas  appears  to  feel  that  the  actual  facts  are 
here  far  from  ideal.  The  rich  indulge  in  banqueting 
instead  of  doing  good.  Therefore  he  repeats  so  con- 
stantly and  always  with  new  grounds  for  it  the  exhorta- 
tion to  charity :  "  Do  not  claim  for  yourselves  alone 
what  God  has  made,  as  if  it  were  only  thus  poured  over 
you ;  share  it  also  with  the  needy"  (V.  iii.  ix.  2).  God 
gives  along  with  the  earnings  the  duty  of  serving  love 
(M.  II.  iv.) ;  to  him  who  Joyfully  gives  of  them,  God 
makes  them  more  ;  he  will  be  brought  into  the  number 
of  the  angels  and  with  his  seed  dwell  by  the  Son  of  God 
(S.  IX.  xxiv.  2-4).  Such  an  one,  like  the  good  servant 
in  the  parable,  not  only  did  more  than  he  was  com- 


360     CHRISTIANITY   AMONG   THE   HEATHEN 

missioned  to  do,  but  also  gave  to  his  fellow-servants 
of  the  food  sent  him  for  the  banquet. 

Hennas  cannot  conceal  that  the  Christians  with 
their  unlimited  liberality  have  repeatedly  had  unhappy 
experiences.  False  prophets  take  advantage  of  them, 
and  they  are  often  asked  for  help  by  undeserving 
people.  But  so  great  is  the  necessity  to  do  good 
that  it  overcomes  even  this  scruple.  He  who  gives 
does  not  need  to  ask  to  whom ;  he  is  free  from 
blame,  because  he  has  carried  out  the  service  laid 
upon  him  by  God.  Only  the  recipient  is  responsible. 
He  who  hypocritically  begs  and  receives  gifts  without 
need  will  be  brought  to  task  for  it  by  God.  It  is  a 
delight  in  giving  without  parallel  that  blinds  the  eyes 
thus.  The  energy  with  which  Hermas  sets  it  forth 
becomes  still  clearer  when  we  see  that  he  points  new 
thoughts  in  this  way.  And  indeed  Hermas  can  bear 
this  witness  to  the  Christians  of  his  time,  that  they 
gave  not  only  of  their  superfluity,  but  of  what  was 
hard-earned  (S.  ix.  xxiv.  2,  if.  M.  ii.  4).  JNIore 
still ;  what  he  here  recommends,  following  an  older 
Christian  saying,  viz.,  that  they  should  by  fasting 
spare  from  their  own  mouths  in  order  to  have  to 
give  to  the  needy  (S.  v.  iii.  7),  was  without  doubt 
put  into  practice. 

If  it  is  no  ideal  picture  that  we  gaze  upon  here,  yet 
this  very  fact  is  in  itself  a  good  witness  for  Hermas, 
and  in  general  for  the  earnestness  of  moral  judgment 
in  the  Church.  The  defects  were  not  veiled.  Sin 
was  called  sin.  "  Increase  not  your  sin,"  says  Hermas, 
in  his  oft-repeated  call  to  repentance  (V.  v.  7,  M.  iv. 
iii.  7,  S.  VI.  i.  4,  ii.  3,  viii.  xi.  3).  The  guilt  is  admitted, 
but  at  the  same  time  improvement  is  vigorously  striven 


TRANSITION   TO   CATHOLICISM  361 

after.  However  hard  the  preacher  of  penitence  com- 
plains, we  have  not  discovered  any  extraordinarily 
heinous  sins.  The  Christian  Church  is  not  constituted 
of  angels  but  of  men,  though  Hermas  praises  certain 
individuals  for  an  angel-like  walk  (S.  ix.  xxiv.  4, 
xxvii.  3).  As  he  says  himself,  in  this  world  just  men 
and  sinners  cannot  be  distinguished  (S.  iii.  2).  But 
the  Christian  Church  is  still  aware  that  she  is  not 
only  a  refuge  for  sinners,  but  in  the  first  place  a 
communion  of  the  saints ;  nor  has  she  forgotten  that 
the  Christian  standing,  baptism  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord,  brings  its  definite  moral  obligations.  Among 
the  defects  that  we  found,  the  most  conspicuous  are 
the  worldly  spirit,  a  certain  heathenish  way  of  living, 
and  the  unwillingness  to  confess,  the  fleeing  from 
suffering.  Here,  however,  we  must  not  forget  that 
our  guarantor  is  an  ascetic  and  confessor,  who  is 
especially  strict  in  his  judgment  of  these  two  points. 
Few  modern  Churches  would  find  favour  in  his  eyes. 
The  errors  which  have  met  us  in  the  domains  of  sex 
and  commerce  ultimately  bear  witness  only  to  the 
high  demands  which  were  made,  and  the  earnest  view 
which  was  taken  of  the  highest  principles  in  the 
evangelical  apprehension  of  moral  law.  To  be  sure, 
a  strong  tendency  to  external  morality  and  negative 
asceticism  pervades  the  Church.  But  the  Christian 
consciousness  reacts  against  it  with  primitive  power. 
Inwardness  of  method  and  delight  in  doing  all  good 
have  met  us  as  characteristic  features.  And  how 
impressi^'e  is  the  demand  for  an  entire  Christianity  ? 
Certainly  it  is  no  ideal  picture  we  have  here  before 
us,  but  as  certainly  it  is  a  picture  of  which  Christianity 
has  no  reason  to  be  ashamed.     In  this  Roman  Church 


362    CHRISTIANITY   AMONG  THE   HEATHEN 

there  was  something  that  was  looked  for  elsewhere 
in  the  world  in  vain :  simplicity  in  the  midst  of  a 
refined  over-culture,  honest  effort  in  a  world  of  deceit 
and  moral  degradation,  and  active  charity  which  boldly 
resisted  all  selfishness. 

To  be  sure  there  are  black  sheep  in  the  fold  :  wicked 
people,  hypocrites,  slanderers,  doubters,  and  those  who 
yield  themselves  to  all  wickedness.  But  there  will 
come  a  purifying  judgment,  and  when  all  these  evil 
elements  are  removed,  the  Church  of  God  will  be 
one  body,  one  mind,  one  idea,  one  faith,  one  love ; 
and  then  will  the  Son  of  God  rejoice  and  be  glad 
in  them,  when  He  finds  His  people  pure  (S.  ix. 
xviii.  4). 


CONCLUSION. 

We  have  reached  the  end  of  our  survey.  In  the 
course  of  our  review  of  a  whole  century  of  Christianity 
we  have  become  acquainted  with  very  different  con- 
gregations. We  have  now  to  sum  up.  Was  Aristides 
justified  in  giving  such  a  brilUant  description  of  the 
Christian  hfe  ?  We  may  confidently  answer  that  he 
was.  In  the  picture  which  we  have  reproduced  from 
actual  sources,  we  have  found  many  imperfections 
and  blemishes.  These,  however,  do  not  constitute 
the  essence  of  it.  At  the  outset,  before  the  eye  is 
used  to  them,  they  may  indeed  have  some  disturbing 
effect.  But  as  we  peer  into  the  details,  the  dark 
spots  recede  and  all  the  brighter  streams  the  light 
from  the  whole.  We  may  even  discover  virtues  in 
failings,  and  real,  if  misdirected,  power  in  defects. 

Before  we  pass  judgment,  it  is  important  that  we 
should  be  in  possession  of  the  correct  standpoint. 
We  are  not  entitled  to  start  from  the  moral  views  of 
our  own  time,  although  even  then,  could  we  be  quite 
honest  and  exclude  all  involuntary  idealising,  the 
comparison  might  conceivably  result  in  favour  of 
those  days.  Hausrath's  view  "  that  to-day,  after  the 
Gospel  has  worked  on  the  human  heart  for  eighteen 
centuries,  the  most  desolate  Christian  Church  ap- 
proaches the  ideal  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  more 
closely  than  the  most  outstanding  of  the  second 
century,"  does  justice  neither  to  the  days  of  the  early 

363 


364  CONCLUSION 

Church  nor  to  our  own  time.  Nor  are  we  entitled 
to  start  from  any  sort  of  ideal  picture  of  Christian 
communities  which  we  have  made  for  ourselves,  even 
if  that  ideal  be  based  upon  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 
Certainly  we  must  estimate  the  real  Christian  worth 
of  everything  by  the  Gospel ;  but  the  question  we 
are  dealing  with  is  not  whether  the  morality  of  the 
early  Church  was  Christian,  but  whether  there  was 
any  realisation  of  Christian  morality  in  the  earliest 
Church,  and  if  there  was,  what  value  is  to  be  attached 
to  it.  To  that  end  we  must  employ  an  external 
standard.  The  morality  of  the  early  Christian 
Churches  can  be  correctly  judged  only  by  comparison 
with  the  moral  condition  of  the  surrounding  world. 
Let  us  attempt,  in  a  short  survey,  to  picture  this 
condition  for  ourselves.  We  shall  not  start  from 
St  Paul's  opinions  of  Jewish  and  heathen  morality 
which  we  have  already  mentioned,  Paul  being  open 
to  the  charge  of  partiality.  We  shall  adopt  results 
which  are  based  upon  the  legitimate  evidence  of 
historians  and  orators,  moral  philosophers  and  satirists, 
the  results,  that  is,  of  modern  historical  research,  and 
in  particular  of  L.  Friedliinder's  masterly  work, 
Dcu^stellungen  cms  der  Sittengeschichte  Roms. 

It  was  indeed  a  bloom-time  of  the  highest  culture, 
to  whose  magnificent  services  in  literature  and  art 
the  world  owes  a  debt  of  gratitude  ;  an  age  of  the 
greatest  moral  refinement  which  looked  down  with 
contempt  upon  the  former  barbarism  and  upon  the 
uncivilised  peoples  beyond  the  bounds  of  the  Empire. 
Yet  it  was  a  time  of  moral  enervation,  decrepitude 
and  decay.  There  is  no  disproof  of  this  in  the  fact 
that  it  received  a  new  impetus  and  experienced,  in  a 


CONCLUSION  365 

great  religious  Renewal,  a  new  moral  birth— the  last 
roses  of  autumn.  All  was  swept  away  by  the  storms 
of  national  migration ;  only  what  had  its  origin  in 
Christianity  lasted  through  the  winter. 

The  moral  ideal  of  the  ancients,  the  strenuous  man 
who  devotes  himself  to  the  service  of  the  city  and 
the  state,  was  destroyed  by  the  Empire.  With 
astonishing  rapidity  imperialism  and  devotion  to  the 
imperial  house  took  firm  hold.  Fostered  by  a  kind 
of  philosophical  cosmopolitanism,  an  intense  patriotism 
quickly  developed.  But  there  was  no  practical  task 
for  it.  The  Emperor,  with  his  freedmen  and  slaves, 
managed  public  affairs.  At  Rome  the  Senate,  and 
in  the  provincial  towns  the  councils,  found  their  chief 
occupation  in  passing  decrees  of  honour.  Servility  was 
the  only  means  of  advance,  often  the  sole  salvation ; 
independence  of  thought  was  dangerous.  This  was 
the  position  both  in  the  state,  with  its  notabilities  and 
officials,  and  in  the  great  families,  with  their  extensive 
and  complex  gradations  of  servants.  The  great 
wasted  their  means  in  incredible  extravagances :  the 
poor  suffered  themselves  to  be  fed. 

There  was  no  family  life.  Time  was  frittered  away 
in  the  baths.  Interest  was  absorbed  in  the  games. 
Even  the  studies  of  the  young  nobility  partook  chiefly 
of  the  nature  of  sport.  Not  that  there  was  no  real 
work :  the  gigantic  buildings  of  the  time  bear 
eloquent  testimony  that  there  was.  Alongside  of 
the  troops  of  slaves  there  seems  to  have  been  a  not 
inconsiderable  array  of  free  workers.  Particularly  in 
the  smaller  towns  there  existed  a  middle  class  which 
fought  its  way  through  life  somehow,  severely 
threatened   indeed    by  the  wholesale   competition  of 


366  CONCLUSION 

slave-holders.  The  state  did  not  neglect  higher 
tasks,  as  the  Christians  of  the  time  always  recognised. 
It  protected  the  frontiers  and  made  roads.  Yet  the 
soldiers  grumbled  loudly  if  they  were  employed  for 
this  purpose.  It  made  fixed  laws,  and  set  limits  to 
the  arbitrariness  of  officials  and  the  robbing  of  the 
provinces  by  tax-collectors.  Nevertheless  there  was 
no  feeling  of  safety  among  the  people.  Many  of  the 
nobles  were  ruined  by  their  riches,  while  the  poor 
and  insignificant  had  no  protection  against  arbitrary 
treatment.  In  spite  of  its  efforts  to  regard  crime  in 
its  moral  aspect,  and  to  enquire  into  motives  rather 
than  consequences,  public  law  was  terrible  in  its 
means  of  obtaining  evidence  as  well  as  in  its  punish- 
ments. Money  was  might — though  also  danger. 
Hence  there  was  on  the  one  hand  striving  after 
possessions,  heaping  up  of  riches ;  on  the  other, 
pauperism  and  beggary.  As  a  rule  the  former  was 
accompanied  by  hard-heartedness,  the  latter  by  envy 
and  hate.  The  balance  could  only  be  preserved  by 
the  surrender  of  personal  independence ;  the  client 
was  provided  for,  but  also  despised  and  misused. 
The  philosopher's  surrender  of  property  is  only  a 
means  of  guarding  his  liberty  on  all  sides,  no  more 
in  the  last  resort  than  a  manifestation  of  dominant 
egoism.  Correct  style  demanded  humanity.  This 
humanity,  however,  was  not  what  we  understand  by 
the  word,  but  elegant  society  forms  which  exposed 
no  weakness  by  any  show  of  feeling,  preserved  a 
gentle  and  suave  manner,  and  avoided  all  obscenities 
of  speech.  All  that  was  only  a  varnish,  and  behind 
the  smooth-turned  phrase  there  lurked  want  of 
character     and     often     shamelessness.      This     very 


CONCLUSION  367 

humanity  was  insincere.  The  worst  feature  was 
morahty  in  the  strict  sense.  There  were,  no  doubt, 
many  houses  where  honourable  family  life  was  main- 
tained. We  do  the  middle  classes  a  gross  injustice, 
if  we  treat  Tacitus'  scandalous  tales  of  the  palace  as 
the  only  expression  of  existent  circumstances.  At 
the  same  time  it  cannot  be  denied  that  unparalleled 
shamelessness  had  spread  over  wide  circles.  Un- 
utterable things  were  done  without  any  secrecy. 
Divorces  were  of  daily  occurrence,  adultery  common, 
and  unchastity  considered  no  sin.  Antinous,  the 
plaything  of  an  Emperor,  was  deified.  The  wife  was 
slighted  and  coquetted  with ;  the  upbringing  of 
children  was  left  to  slaves.  Human  life  was  little 
valued.  Not  a  few  were  sacrificed  to  magical  rites. 
Poison  removed  the  inconvenient.  Suicide,  either 
voluntary  or  compulsory,  ended  many  a  promising 
career.  The  philosophy  of  a  Seneca  reveals  the 
moral  bankruptcy  even  of  the  best.  Alongside  of 
frivolousness  and  satire  there  did  not  lack  religion. 
But  this  also  was  without  moral  force.  On  the  con- 
trary, the  myths,  dramatised  and  parodied,  were 
demoralising.  The  old  ceremonial,  renewed  by 
Augustus,  was  in  reality  only  a  matter  of  form,  the 
worship  of  the  Emperor  a  political  act.  The  new 
Oriental  cults,  sometimes  with  expensive  festivals 
and  horrible  mysteries,  were  only  superstition,  a 
means  of  quieting  fearful  consciences  by  penances  of 
all  sorts,  a  mere  outward  purification  with  no  inward 
value.  And  as  the  climax  of  all,  there  was  the  chief 
tendency  of  the  time,  the  most  impious  and  most 
immoral  of  all  religions — Astrology. 

It  was  into  this  world   that   Christianity  entered, 


368  CONCLUSION 

gathering  churches  round  the  Gospel  of  God's  for- 
giving grace.  Without  any  imperial  support,  such 
as  Judaism  enjoyed,  it  dared  to  have  an  independent 
conviction  as  to  man's  nature  and  duty.  It  made  no 
compromise  with  the  state  religion  by  interpreting 
it  to  suit  its  own  ends  as  philosophers  did.  It  was 
not  satisfied,  like  the  majority  of  cults,  with  a  simul- 
taneous participation  in  other  forms,  or,  like  Judaism, 
with  the  minimum  of  adherence.  It  offered  its 
followers  an  alternative  and  demanded  from  them 
an  unreserved  confession  even  when  this  meant 
death.  In  return,  however,  it  gave  them  what  the 
whole  world  of  the  period  lacked  :  peace  of  conscience 
through  reconciliation  with  God,  a  new  aim,  and 
fresh  moral  strength. 

The  Christian  lives  to  God,  and  finds  his  life  in 
God.  At  the  same  time  he  lives  for  the  brethren, 
for  humanity  at  large.  Christianity,  so  to  speak, 
revives  the  now  lifeless  ancient  ideal  that  the 
individual  exists  for  the  Polls,  but  the  ideal  assumes 
an  extended  and  transfigured  shape. 

The  whole  Christian  brotherhood — the  whole 
humanity — belongs  to  the  Christian  sphere  of  labour. 
Christian  activity  is  not  the  result  of  organised 
selfishness  and  blind  hatred  of  all  other  similar  bodies. 
It  is  as  wide  as  love  and  entire  devotion  can  make  it. 
The  Christian  calling  is  not  confined  to  any  special 
class  of  enfranchised  citizens.  Man  and  woman,  freed 
man  and  slave,  have  an  equal  share  in  it.  It  even 
abolished  the  fundamental  distinction  of  the  ancients, 
Greek,  i.e.  civilised,  and  barbarian.  It  looks  with 
contempt  on  none.  It  aims  at  winning  every 
individual  by  love,  whatever  the  age,  standing,  sex 


CONCLUSION  369 

or  race  be.     In  a  purely  voluntary  fashion   a   great 
organisation  was  developed,  effecting   the  spread  of 
the  Gospel,  the  multiplication  of  Churches,  and  the 
preservation  and  education  of  adherents.     It  secured 
a   firm   footing   throughout   the   whole  Empire  and 
beyond  it.     It  had  sentinels  every^vhere,  all  joined  in 
living  union.     Even  the  highest  officials  of  the  state 
could    only  rarely  travel  by  the    imperial  post ;  but 
every  Christian   could  rely  on  the    brethren  to  help 
him   on   his   way.     The   net   of  Christian   Churches 
spread  over  the  Empire  meant  a  powerful,  beneficent 
organisation   in  the   centre   of  a   world  of  egotism. 
The  chief  object  of  the  clergy,  the  main  aim  of  their 
voluntary   offerings,    was   mutual   aid.     Money   was 
gathered  also  by  the  priests  of   Isis  and   the   great 
mother  of  gods  ;  but  they  gathered  it  for  a  luxurious 
ceremonial  and  their  own  well-being.     With  Chris- 
tianity it   was   far  otherwise.     Whenever  there  was 
anyone  in  need,  help  was  at  hand,  and  no  bond  of  life 
and  limb  was  demanded.     How  great  were  the  social 
advantages   which    Christianity  offered,    though   un- 
recognised by  the   state  and  sometimes   persecuted, 
we  learn  from  the  precautionary  measures    adopted 
against   the   intrusion  of  impure    elements.     Money 
was  not  scattered  abroad  as  it  was  by  the  Emperor, 
when  he  entertained  the  mob  with  bread  and  games 
to  keep  it  in  good  humour.     An  attempt  was  made 
rather  to  train  to  work  and  to  teach  the  exercise  of 
temperance  and  contentment.     The  social  distinctions 
between    rich   and    poor,    owner   and    slave,    existed 
within  as  well  as  without  the  Christian  Church,  but 
they  had  lost  their  sting,  because  the  mercy,  mildness, 

and  goodness  of  the  one  side,  and  the  grateful  trust 

24 


370  CONCLUSION 

and  joyful  obedience  of  the  other  neutralised  all 
distinctions.  Here,  too,  there  was  no  lack  of 
"  humanity."  "  Whatsoever  things  are  true,  what- 
soever things  are  honourable,  whatsoever  things  are 
pure,  whatsoever  things  are  lovely,  whatsoever  things 
are  of  good  report,  if  there  be  any  virtue,  and  if  there 
be  any  praise,  think  on  these  things,"  was  no  cant 
phrase. 

The  greatest  importance  was  laid  on  truth,  honesty 
in  business  and  conduct,  honourable  family  life,  and 
chastity.  A  complete  rupture  with  the  heathen  past 
was  demanded  of  new  members,  and  they  were 
conscious  of  an  inward  moral  change.  The  outward 
form  was  not  enough.  The  innermost  feelings  were 
appealed  to,  and  sins  of  thought  confessed.  Yet  with 
all  the  strict  discipline  of  the  Churches,  the  motive  in 
the  last  instance  was  love.  Even  in  the  most  extreme 
case,  the  invocation  of  God's  judgment,  the  end  aimed 
at  was  the  salvation  of  a  soul.  Life  had  eternal 
worth.  The  body  was  holy,  as  the  temple  of  the 
Lord.  Suicide  was  as  much  abhorred  as  unchastity. 
While  there  was  no  avoidance  on  the  part  of 
Christians  of  violence  and  unrighteousness,  no  attempt 
was  made  to  secure  revenge.  The  highest  demand 
of  Christian  morality  was  that  injustice  should  be 
endured  with  forgiveness  and  pardon.  Prayer  for 
enemies  and  persecutors  is  the  highest  triumph  of 
the  moral  power  of  Christianity.  And  this  whole 
community  which  in  certain  places  grew  so  quickly 
as  to  be  dangerous  to  the  old  religion,  not  a  new 
association  but  a  new  people,  a  state  within  a  state, 
yet  kept  far  removed  from  the  hatred  of  the  Romans 
which  marked   the   Jews.     With  humble  obedience 


CONCLUSION  371 

it  complied  loyally  with  the  existing  authority  of 
God's  ordering,  even  where  it  was  met  by  opposition, 
offering  to  every  measure  only  the  passive  resistance 
of  a  faith  that  rejoiced  in  confession. 

As  we  have  seen,  this  is  no  imaginary  picture. 
Every  single  fact  has  been  supported  by  documentary 
evidence.  The  apologists  were  thoroughly  entitled 
to  represent  morality  in  the  Christian  Churches  as 
Aristides  has  done.  Heathen  like  Pliny,  I^ucian,  and 
Celsus  were  compelled,  even  against  their  will,  to 
witness  to  the  correctness  of  the  picture.  The 
Christians  themselves  were  well  aware  that  it  was 
not  sufficient  to  point  to  their  splendid  and  marvellous 
moral  teaching  if  its  realisation  in  actual  practice 
failed.  This  very  thought  is  taken  advantage  of  by 
a  preacher  to  urge  upon  the  hearts  of  his  hearers  the 
fulfilment  of  the  commandments,  and,  abo^  e  all,  of 
that  highest  and  hardest  commandment,  Love  thine 
enemies. 

It  is  equally  clear,  indeed,  that  the  ideal  was  not 
always  realised.  But  offences  against  it  were  excep- 
tions, and  have  less  significance,  as  they  awoke  at  once 
the  moral  consciousness  of  the  spiritual  leaders  and 
of  the  congregations. 

If  even  one  half  of  the  Christians  lived  as  we  have 
described,  something  great  was  already  achieved. 
Certainly  more  of  them  did.  The  discipline  exerted 
by  this  majority  was,  apart  from  other  considerations, 
an  invaluable  moral  achievement. 

This  brings  us  to  a  second  question. 

The  period  we  have  covered  is  a  long  one,  and  at 
the  close  we  may  not  exhibit  a  picture  that  lacks 
perspective.     Changes   occurred  in  Christianity.      In 


372  CONCLUSION 

these   young   days  of  the  Church   development  was 
most  rapid.     How  does  this  affect  its  morals  ?     It  is 
a  widely-spread  idea   that  a   period  of  deep  decline 
follows    a   brilliant   beginning,    and   that    the    post- 
apostolic  age   cannot   be   placed  within  sight  of  the 
apostolic.     That  may  be  right,  if  the  concise  spiritual 
power  of  St   Paul's  epistles   are  compared  with  the 
rambling  spiritual  poverty  of  the  Apostolic  Fathers. 
In   our   domain,  however,  it   is   a   totally  erroneous 
view.     We  have,  on  the  contrary,  to  reckon  with  a 
^  real   advance.     Let   us   again   picture   the  course  of 
development   from   St   Paul  to  Hermas  in  its  main 
points.      Jewish     Christianity,    which    proceeds     on 
widely  different  presuppositions,  we  shall  not  consider. 
There  an  already  existing  ideal  was  to  be  realised, 
but   with    inwardness   and   purity.     In   the   heathen 
world    it   was   otherwise.     Few   of  those   whom    St 
Paul's   preaching  won  for  the    Gospel   had   received 
moral  schooling  in  the  Jewish  synagogues.     Up  till 
now  most  of  them   imagined  debaucheries  of  every 
kind — impurity   and    gluttony,    dishonesty    and    im- 
^     posture — to   be   the   natural  course  of  life.     It  was 
therefore  necessary  to  inculcate  carefully  the  elements 
of  morality,   that    God's   will   is    sanctification — i.e., 
refraining    from    unchastity    and    deceit.     St    Paul 
trusted  the  working   of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  develop 
therefrom  a  steadfast  moral  conscience  which  could, 
in   all  cases,  give    correct   guidance.     From  time  to 
time  he  would  present  the  moral  ideal  in  an  enumera- 
tion  of  Christian   virtues,  or  he  would  go  into  the 
conduct  befitting  the  various  positions  of  life.     But 
only  as  little  as  possible  did  he  attempt  to  anticipate 
free   development   by   legislation.     Thus,  within   his 


CONCLUSION  373 

Churches  Christianity  developed  in  very  different 
ways:  markedly  individualistic  with  all  the  allied 
merits  and  failings  in  Corinth ;  strongly  social, 
emphasising  order  in  the  Churches  of  Macedonia ; 
with  a  practical  bent  in  Galatia  ;  with  a  speculative 
asceticism  in  Phrygia. 

St  Paul  only  removed  excrescences.  All  teachers, 
however,  were  not  equally  liberal.  The  Churches 
themselves  desired  a  more  rigid  statement  of  the 
moral  ideal.  In  some  degree  this  was  supplied  in 
the  Old  Testament,  which  was  read  in  the  Pauhne 
Churches  ;  in  some  degree,  also,  by  the  words  of  the 
Lord  Himself  and  what  could  be  drawn  from  the 
pattern  which  He  supplied.  Jewish  Christianity 
may  also  have  co-operated.  To  some  extent  it 
developed  from  within  as  the  result  of  the  new  tasks 
which  Christianity  had  to  face,  the  duty  of  confession, 
for  example,  in  times  of  persecution,  or  of  subordina- 
tion and  obedience  in  the  controversy  about  con- 
stitution. In  the  post-Pauline  period,  without  being 
able  to  distinguish  clearly  the  various  gradations,  we 
can  see  the  growth  of  the  feeling  of  unity  through- 
out Christendom,  strengthening  both  communities 
and  individuals  against  threats  from  without.  In  the 
Johannean  period  we  have  the  conflict  of  Christianity 
with  gnostic  duahsm  and  its  negative  asceticism 
giving  occasion  for  the  strong  assertion  of  the 
practical  Christianity  of  brotherly  love.  Lastly  we 
are  brought  to  a  stand  before  the  developed  ecclesi- 
astical Christianity,  where  there  is  the  greatest  possible 
amount  of  law  and  order,  and  the  individual's  chief 
duty  seems  to  be  to  accommodate  himself  to  these 
grooves. 


374  CONCLUSION 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  defining  of  the 
moral  ideal  has  a  compressing  and  curtailing  signifi- 
cance. On  the  other  hand,  however,  it  means  a  closer 
approximation  to  realisation. 

The  real  moral  status  of  the  Churches  is  raised  in 
spite  of  all  so-called  secularisation,  or,  rather,  to  some 
extent  in  consequence  of  the  abatement  of  enthusiasm. 
Excesses  like  those  with  which  Paul  had  to  contend 
in  Corinth  are  to  be  met  with  only  in  quarters  which 
the  Church  cut  off  from  herself.  In  the  later  litera- 
ture there  is  hardly  any  mention  of  the  sins  of  the 
flesh,  falsehood,  and  so  forth.  This  was  not  because 
such  were  considered  indifferent,  but  because  within 
the  Churches  there  was  now  no  occasion  to  discuss 
them.  (With  catechumens,  of  course,  it  was  different.) 
On  the  contrary,  the  most  serious  task  now  was  to 
estimate  at  their  full  heinousness  and  to  punish  sins 
of  thought.  We  can  understand  this,  inasmuch  as 
the  Churches  were  not  now  mission  Churches  but 
self-supporting.  Even  at  first  these  Churches  pos- 
sessed some  few  who  belonged  from  youth  to 
Christianity,  and  had  imbibed  Christian  thought 
with  their  mother's  milk.  As  time  wore  on  the 
number  of  these  people  increased. 

The  thought  of  belonging  to  the  third  or  fourth 
Christian  generation,  even  where  it  awakes  a  feel- 
ing of  decadence,  includes  also  the  consciousness  of 
being  heir  of  a  great  tradition.  Habit,  notwith- 
standing the  danger  of  a  Christianity  of  habit,  has 
its  chief  educational  significance  exactly  in  the 
domain  of  morals.  The  preservation  of  something 
of  the  early  freshness  and  inspiration,  in  spite  of  all 
adaptation  to  existing  conditions,  was  effected  by  the 


CONCLUSION  375 

powerful  eschatological  expectation  which,  to  the  end, 
markedly  distinguished  the  early  Christianity  from 
that  of  the  following  period. 

Goethe  says  :  "  Humanity  advances  continually  ; 
man  remains  ever  the  same."  The  Christian  of  the 
second  century  had  to  do  with  the  same  temptations 
as  the  Christian  of  the  first,  but  the  general  tone  of^\ 
Christian  morals  had  advanced  and  exerted  a  whole-  ■ 
some  influence  on  the  conduct  of  the  individual.  For 
with  all  the  richness  and  variety  of  form  that  the 
Christian  life  may  assume,  it  is  ever  one  and  the  same 
Spirit  that  works  in  it,  the  Spirit  of  Jesus  Christ. 

The  advance  of  which  we  have  spoken  is  not  con- 
stant. Within  the  early  Christian  period  we  have 
had  fluctuations  to  consider,  and  if  we  glance  a  little 
beyond  our  period,  we  shall  become  aware,  towards 
the  end  of  the  second  century,  of  an  actual  retrogres- 
sion. Christianity  renounces  her  strict  exclusiveness 
more  and  more.  She  enters  the  field  of  Grseco-Roman 
culture.  Justin  is  delighted  to  quote  Homer,  in  spite 
of  his  abominable  myths  ;  a  Christian  Church  honours 
the  teacher  whom  it  celebrates  with  a  statue,  without, 
however,  the  hero-worship  of  the  gnostics ;  the  cata- 
combs are  decorated  with  elegant  ornaments ;  the 
moral  apprehension  is  laxer.  The  Church  con- 
tinually throws  her  doors  wider.  The  institution 
of  penance  rendered  a  form  of  discipline  possible 
which  could  adapt  itself  to  conditions.  Any  reaction 
in  the  direction  of  a  stricter  view  is  cut  off  as  heretical. 
Bishops  begin  to  deal  with  Church  politics,  becoming 
unduly  mixed  up  with  the  influential  people  of  the 
palace  and  quarrelling  with  one  another — a  demoral- 
ising which,  according   to  Eusebius,  received  God's 


376  CONCLUSION 

judgment   in   the   Diocletian  persecution.     Worldli- 
ness    increases   in    the    Christian    kingdom ;    sinml- 
/taneously  flight  from    the  world  grows    ever    more 
usual. 

The  moral  decline  of  Christianity  shows  traces  of 
the  general  demoralisation  of  the  time.  But  while 
in  the  storms  of  national  migration  all  else  was  lost, 
(  the  moral  spirit  of  Christianity  was  preserved,  and 
presently  began  to  demonstrate  its  civilising  power 
in  the  Teutonic  stock  which  now  makes  its  appearance 
in  the  historical  field.  From  this  point  onward  a 
continuous  advance  can  be  observed. 

The  development  of  early  Christian  morality,  how- 
ever, was  not  completed  entirely  from  within.  At 
several  points  we  have  met  variously  effective  admix- 
tures of  foreign  ideas.  Here  we  must  return  to  the 
Gospel  once  more.  Jesus  was  in  no  way  an  ascetic. 
His  opponents  have  censured  that  as  a  defect.  Any 
apparently  ascetic  traits,  e.g..  His  being  without  wife 
and  home  and  possessions,  were  only  conditions  of 
His  personal  calling.  The  precepts  of  a  similar 
tendency,  in  which  He  inculcated  restrictions  upon 
His  apostles,  and  surrender  of  property  upon  in- 
dividuals who  wished  to  become  His  followers,  were 
conditioned  in  the  same  way.  Jesus'  "Life  of  Poverty," 
as  Saint  Francis  apprehended  it,  and  as  we  found  it 
among  the  gnostics  of  the  second  century,  is  a  dis- 
tortion of  His  picture  due  to  a  foreign  spirit.  It  is 
in  this  very  respect,  in  this  thoroughly  positive  atti- 
tude to  the  manifold  moral  duty  of  man,  that  the 
greatness  of  Jesus  lies.  While  He  claims  the  heart 
for  God,  He  yet  insists  on  the  indissolubility  of 
marriage,  acknowledges  the  state,  and  desires  proper 


CONCLUSION  377 

use  of  possessions.  This  immanent  piety  which  sees 
a  divine  servdce  in  every  detail  of  hfe,  because  every- 
where it  acknowledges  God  and  is  sure  of  Him,  did 
exercise  some  defining  influence  on  Christianity,  but 
was  never  quite  understood,  and  was  not  exclusively 
maintained.  It  came  in  contact  with  a  powerful 
current  of  the  age,  the  ascetic  tendency,  which 
travelled  here  from  the  Orient  and  triumphed  on 
Jewish  as  well  as  on  Greek  soil.  Originating  in  a 
physical  rather  than  in  an  ethical  Dualism,  it  could 
not  comprehend  the  inwardness  of  Jesus'  thoughts. 
If  there  was  any  antithesis  between  a  Holy  God  and 
a  sinful  world,  it  seemed  necessary  that  it  should  find 
outward  expression  :  not  a  mere  inward  breaking  with 
sinful  desires,  but  also  an  outward  separation  from  all 
evil,  a  renunciation  of  all  that  forms  its  seat,  and,  to 
some  extent,  its  origin  as  well. 

We  possess  a  twofold  proof  that  this  asceticism 
does  not  rest  entirely  upon  an  increase  of  the 
moral  earnestness  of  Christianity,  but  has  entered 
Christianity  from  without.  In  the  first  place  there 
is  the  distinctly  observable  conflict  between  the 
two  views  in  a  man  like  St  Paul.  The  one,  the 
negative-ascetic,  which  as  man  of  his  time  and  as 
former  Pharisee  he  honours,  deludes  him  with  celibacy 
as  the  Christian  ideal.  The  other,  the  positive-ethical, 
which  constitutes  his  warrant  as  Apostle  of  Jesus 
Christ,  causes  him  to  preach  Christian  liberty  and  to 
exalt  love  above  all  ascetic  practices.  The  greatness 
of  St  Paul  lies  in  the  fact  that  the  second  considera- 
tion always  prevailed  with  him ;  Christ  triumphs  in 
him  over  the  spirit  of  the  age.  In  these  days  of  ours, 
Paul  the  ascetic  would  have  no  part,  but  Paul  the 


378  CONCLUSION 

Apostle  remains  still  in  our  time,  as  he  was  of  old,  the 
world  missionary. 

In  the  second  place,  what  we  observe  is  not  a 
gradual  advance  of  ascetic  tone  in  early  Christianity, 
such  as  we  should  expect  if  it  had  developed  from 
some  internal  source.  Immediately  on  its  appearance 
among  the  gnostics,  it  asserted  itself  with  all  severity, 
and  only  gradually  gave  place  to  milder  conceptions. 
The  domain  of  morals  shared  in  what  we  may  call  the 
Christianising  of  gnosticism.  Here  also  the  Gospel  of 
Jesus  Christ  overcame  the  tendencies  of  the  age. 
Basilides  stands  nearer  the  Gospel  than  the  earliest 
gnostics,  just  as  Clement  of  Alexandria,  with  his  con- 
demnation of  riches,  is  more  evangelical  than,  let  us  say, 
Hermas.  No  more  than  Dualism  can  this  asceticism 
be  attributed  to  Christianity  ;  the  moral  earnestness 
with  which  it  is  practised  is  its  only  Christian  feature. 
Just  as  little  can  we  trace  to  Christianity  the  excesses 
to  which  asceticism  leads  when  it  o'erleaps  itself 
and  degenerates  into  the  opposite.  Here  once  more 
we  must  rather  emphasise  the  separation  of  the 
early  Christian  Church  from  both  extremes,  in  the 
knowledge  that  the  preservation  of  its  power  lay 
in  a  truly  practical  Christianity.  It  was  thus  that 
the  victory  was  won.  Galen  admired  the  abstinence 
of  the  Christians  above  all,  but  their  apologists  are 
right  in  laying  stress  on  the  other  considerations, 
chiefly  brotherly  love.  It  was  as  a  charitable  organisa- 
tion that  the  Christian  Church  carried  to  a  victorious 
issue  its  mighty  contest  with  the  Roman  Empire,  the 
heathen  religions,  and  its  own  sects. 

Christianity  did  not  owe  its  final  victory  to 
superiority  of  dogma.      To  Neoplatonism  it  seemed 


CONCLUSION  379 

ciXoyoi   TTia-Ti^,  irrational   faith.      As  a  matter  of  fact 
Christianity  was   inferior   to   that  system  as  regards 
speculative   power    and    logical    completeness.      But 
Christianity    possessed    what     the     speculations     of 
Neoplatonism   lacked  —  the  sure  historical    basis    of  ) 
Jesus  Christ's  person.     Nor  was  it  to  a  higher  moral 
teaching  that  Christianity  owed  its  victory.     Stoicism 
and  Xeoplatonism  after  all  produced  moral  thoughts 
of  great  beauty  and  purity,  thoughts  which  are  more 
imposing  to  superficial  contemplation  than  the  simple 
commandments  of  Christianity.     Yet  neither  of  them 
could  enable  artisans  and  old  women  to  lead  a  truly 
philosophical  life.     Christianity   could  and   did ;   the 
apologists  point  triumphantly  to  the  realisation  of  the 
moral  ideal  among  Christians  of  every  standing.     That ' 
was  due  to  the  power  which  issued  from  Jesus  Christ 
and    actually  transformed   men.      The  certainty  and 
confidence   of  faith  based  on  Him  with  reliance  on 
God's  grace  in  Jesus  Christ,  begot   in    Christians   a 
matchless  delight  in  doing  good.     Joy  in  good  was 
more  potent  than  abhorrence  of  evil.     In  the  midst  of 
an  old  and  dying  world  this  new  world  springs   up 
with  the  note  of  victory  running  through  it :    "If 
God  be  for  us,  who    can   be    against   us  ? "      "  And 
this  is  the  victory  which  overcometh  the  world,  even 
our  faith.' 


LITERATURE. 

C.    VON    Weizsacker,    The    Apostolic    Age,    translated     by    James 

Millar,  B.D. 
V.  Lechler,  The  Apostolic  and  Post-Apostolic  Times,  translated  by 

A.J.  K.  Davidson. 
Th.  Keim,  Rom  und  das  Christentmn,  1881. 
O.   Pfleiderer,  Das  Urchristentum,  seine   Schriften  und    Lehren, 

2nd  ed.,  1902. 
A.   C.   M'Giffert,  History  of  Christianity  in   the   Apostolic  Age, 

1897. 
E.   Vernon   Bartlet,  The  Apostolic  Age  :   Its  life,  doctrine,  wor- 
ship, and  polity.      Edinburgh,  1900. 
A.   Harnack,  Die  Mission   und   Ausbreitung  des   Christentums  in 

den  ersten  drei  Jahrhunderten.      Leipzig,  1902. 
P.   Wernle,  The  Beginnings    of   Christianity,   translated  by   Rev. 

G.  A.  Bienemann,  M.A.     London,  1903. 
G.  Heinrici,  Das  Urchristentum,  1902. 
W.  Lecky,  History  of  European  Moi-als,  1870. 
C.  LoHRiNG  Brace,  Gesta  Christi ;  or,  A  History  of  Human  Progress 

under  Christianity.     London,  1  882. 
L.    Friedlander,    Darstellungen   aus    der    Sittengeschichte    Roms, 

6th  ed.,  1888. 
G.  Ulhorn,  Christian  Charity  in  the  Ancient  Church,  1883. 
L.  Zscharnack,  Der  Dienst  der  Frau  in  den  ersten  Jahrhunderten 

der  christlichen  Kirchen.      Gottingen,  1902. 
O.  ZbcKLER,  Askese  und  Monchtum,  2nd  ed.,  1897. 
K.  J.  Neumann,  Der  romische  Staat  und  die  allg.  Kirche,  1890. 
H.  Holtzmann,  Das  N.T.  und  der  romische  Staat,  1892. 
A.  Bigelmair,  Die  Beteiligung  der  Christen  am  offentlichen  Leben 

in  vorconstantinischer  Zeit.      Miinchen,  1902. 
Th.  Zahn,  Skizzen  aus  dem  Leben  der  alten  Kirche,  2nd  ed.,  1900. 
G.  WoHLENBERG,  Bildcr  aus  dem  altkirchlichen  Leben  einer  heid- 

nischen  Grossstadt,  Neue  Kii'chliche  Zeitschrift,  1900,  XL 
H.    AcHELis,    Spuren    des    Urchristentums    auf    den    griechischen 

Inseln,  Zeitschr.  f.  neutestl.  Wissenschaft,  L,  1900. 
R.  Knopf,  Die  soziale  Zusammensetzung  der  altesten  heidenchrist- 
'  -     lichen  Gemeinden,  Zeitschr.  f.  Theologie  und  Kirche,  1900,  X. 

380 


NOTES. 


1.  ANCIENT  STATISTICS  (p.  xxxiv). 

Literature  :— R.  Pohlmann,  Die  Ubervolkerung  der  antiken  Gross- 
stadte,  Preisschrift  der  Jablonowskischen  Gesellschaft,  1884  ; — J. 
Beloch,  Die  Bevolkerung  der  griechisch-romischen  Welt,  Leipzig, 
1886  ;— Zofia  Daszyhska,  Stofif  und  Methode  der  historischen 
Bevolkerungs-statistik,  Conrad's  Jahrb.  fiir  Nat.-Oek.,  66  (3  Series 
11),  1896,  481-506  ;— O.  Seeck,  Die  Statistik  in  der  alten  Geschichte, 
ibid.,  68,  1897,  161-176;—].  Beloch,  Zur  Bevolkerungsgeschichte 
des  Altertums,  ibid.,  321-343;  Antike  und  moderne  Grossstadte, 
Zeitsch  fiir  Sozialwissenschaft,  i.,  1898,  413-423  ; — E.  Kornemann 
Die  romischen  Censuszahlen  als  statistisches  Material,  Conrad's 
Jahrb.,  69,  1897,  291-296;— Ed.  Meyer,  Art.  Bevolkerungswesen, 
Handworterbuch  der  Staatswissenschaften,  ii.^  674-689  ;  Die  Zahl 
der  romischen  Burger  unter  Augustus,  Conrad's  Jahrb.,  70,  1898, 
59-65  (combating  Kornemann). 

The  difficulties  here  are  due  to  the  meagreness  and  the  uncertainty 
of  the  material  at  our  disposal.  We  possess  only  a  few  enumera- 
tions, and  these,  as  a  rule,  bear  upon  capitals  and  special  periods. 
They  record  only  the  number  of  freemen  (for  military  and  excise 
purposes).  The  proportion  of  men,  women,  and  children,  of  free- 
men and  slaves,  is  problematical.  Statements  as  to  the  provision  of 
corn  and  the  extent  of  area  built  over  render  us  considerable  help, 
but  immediately  raise  the  further  points :  who  are  to  be  reckoned 
as  the  recipients  of  alimentation,  what  extent  of  ground  is  to  be 
calculated  for  dwelling-houses,  and  what  for  open  spaces,  gardens, 
etc.  .' 

After  the  tentative  endeavours  of  the  older  scholars,  of  whom,  e.o-., 
Justus  Lipsius  reached  a  total  population  for  Rome  of  four  millions, 
and  Isaac  Vossius  of  fourteen,  it  was  Boeckh  who  started  a  system- 
atic enquiry.  His  results  have  been  adopted  by  one  section  of 
scholars,  mostly  philologists  and  historians.  Recently,  however, 
these  have  been  met  by  a  national-economic  current  of  thought, 
championed  by  Beloch  and  advocated  with  most  warmth  by  Edward 
Meyer.     The  former  rely  simply  on  the  enumerations  handed  down 

381 


382  NOTES 

(Boeckh)j  and  endeavour  to  demonstrate  their  possibility  by  a 
reconstruction  of  corresponding  conditions  with  no  regard  for 
probabiUty  and  analogy^,  taking  for  granted  the  extraordinary 
crowding  of  large  towns  (Pohlmann)  and  immense  accumulations 
of  slaves  belonging  to  single  individuals  (Seeck)  ;  while  the  others 
start  from  a  general  picture  of  the  economic  conditions  arrived  at 
by  observation  of  existing  circumstances,  and  estimate  the  numbers 
handed  down  on  the  ground  of  this  "possibility."  In  addition, 
they  lay  stress  on  the  fact  that  numbers  very  easily  suffer  altei'ation 
in  tradition,  that  it  is  very  difficult  to  check  them,  and  that 
frequently  the  authorities  do  not  combine  their  large  figures  with 
any  concrete  view  (Beloch,  Jahrb.,  68,  322  ;  also  J.  Burckhardt, 
Griech.  Kulturgesch.,  i.  79  ;  115,  note  3  on  /juvpiavSpo^  ;  H.  Delbriick, 
Geschichte  der  Kriegskunst,  i.  1900,  7  ff.,  against  the  traditional 
strength  of  armies). 

Beloch  gives  the  following  numbers  for  the  towns  in  which  we 
are  interested  : — 

Corinth,  600  B.C.,  scarcely  more  than  from  20,000  to  30,000  ; 
421    B.C.   perhaps  100,000. 

Athens,  500  b.c,  scarcely  more  than  20,000  ;  421  b.c.  something 
over  100,000  (Wachsmuth,  200,000). 

Ephesus  (under  Augustus),  not  less  than  200,000. 

Smyrna,  same  as  Ephesus. 

Pergamum  (150  a.d.),  120,000  to  180,000. 

Troas  (in  the  Roman  period),  far  above  10,000  to  15,000. 

Alexandria  (60  b.c),  400,000  to  500,000  (300,000  freemen). 

Antioch,  same  as  Alexandria. 

Rome  (in  the  time  of  Christ),  800,000  to  1,000,000  (1,800,000 
to  2,000,000,  Seeck  ;  2,000,000,  Lanciani). 

The  others  obtain  in  some  cases  considerably  higher  numbers. 
For  while  Beloch  sets  the  numerical  proportion  of  the  sexes  as 
equal,  and  that  of  the  slaves  to  the  freemen  (both  sexes)  as  1  ;  2, 
Seeck  estimates  the  women  somewhat  lower  and  the  slaves  con- 
siderably higher. 

The  numbers  of  the  .slaves  are  especially  hotly  disputed. 
Athenseus  (Deipnos,  vi.  103)  gives,  by  reference  to — 

(Epi)timaeus,  for  Corinth  460,000. 
Ctesicles,  „  Athens  400,000. 
Aristotle,         „    ^Egina    470,000. 

These  numbers,  maintained  by  Boeckh,  Seeck,  and  others,  are 
(riven  up  as  totally  impossible  by  Hume,  Niebuhr,  J.  Burckhardt, 


NOTES  383 

Beloch^  Ed.  Mever.  Perhaps  the  /x  before  ixvptdSe's  is  wi'ongly 
given,  so  that  we  should  have  60,000  for  Corinth  and  70,000  for 
.-Egina  ;  while  in  the  case  of  Athens  the  figure  may  have  fallen 
out  (cf.  note  2). 

Till  now  an  estimate  of  the  earliest  Christian  communities  has 
been  quite  impossible.  Even  for  the  period  of  Constantine  only 
guesses  have  been  made ;  cf.  Harnack,  Mission,  p.  537.  The 
number  of  Jewish  Christians  in  the  year  58  is  fixed  in  Acts  xxi.  20 
at  several  tens  of  thousands.  In  Rome,  Tacitus  (Ann.,  xv.  44) 
records  Nero's  annihilation  of  an  ingens  imdtitudo  of  Christians  in 
the  year  64  ;  cf.  iroXv  TrXrjOo's,  1  Clem.  vi.  1 .  [In  the  year  250  the 
Church  in  Rome  had  154  clergy,  with  over  1500  widows  and  persons 
in  receipt  of  relief ;  this  gives  us  a  total  of  at  least  1 0,000  souls 
(Sohm)].  Pliny  tells  us  that  in  Bithynia  in  the  year  111  a  large 
proportion  of  the  population  was  Christian.  Ignatius  (Eph.,  i.  3) 
speaks  of  the  TroXoTrX-qOia  of  the  Church  in  Ephesus.  The  total 
number  of  Christians  in  Q5  is  said  (Rev.  vii.  9)  to  be  innumerable, 
far  more,  that  is,  than  the  144,000  previously  mentioned.  In 
general  the  primitive  Chi'istian  communities  are  represented  as  too 
small  rather  than  the  revei'se.  The  large  increase  during  our 
period  also  is  reflected  in  the  transition  fi-om  the  family  character 
of  the  congregation  to  a  form  which  necessitated  a  classification 
according  to  age  and  sex  {cf.  p.  286). 

2.  SLAVERY  AMONG  THE  ANCIENTS  (pp.  33  f.,  115  ff.). 

Literature  : — Wallon,  L'esclavage  dans  I'antiquite,  1847  ; — Hermann- 
Bliimner,  Griech.  Privataltertiimer,  ^,  1882,  80  fF.  ; — J.  Burckhardt, 
Griech.  Kulturgeschichte,  i.  152  ff.  ; — Marquardt,  Privatleben  der 
Romer,  2,  1886,  135  ff.,  175  ff.  ; — L  Friedlander,  Sittengesch,  i.^ 
126  ff.  ; — M.  Schneidewin,  Antike  Humanitat,  206  ff.  ; — Th. 
Mommsen,  Rom.  Geschichte,  ii.  74-77  ; — Ed.  Meyer,  Die  Sklaverei 
im  Altertum,  Jahrb.  der  Gehe-Stiftung,  iii.  1899,  191  ^-i  ^"d  in 
several  passages  in  Conrad's  Jahrb.  f.  Nat.-Oek.,  especially  64, 
1895,  696  ff.,  748  :  Zur  Bedeutung  der  Sklaverei  in  der  Kaiserzeit  ; 
— V.  Lechler,  Sklaverei  and  Christentum,  1877  f-  '■> — Th.  Zahn, 
Sklaverei  and  Christentum  in  der  alten  Welt  (1879),  Skizzen  aus 
dem  Leben  der  alten  Kirche,  ^,  62-105,  290-296; — E.  Teichmiiller, 
Der  Einfluss  des  Christentums  auf  die  Sklaverei,  1894. 

As  opposed  to  the  older  view  of  the  immense  expansion  of  slavery 
in  the  ancient  world,  especially  under  the  Em])ire,  and  of  the 
method  of  treating  slaves  as  it  is  clearly  expressed  in  the  citation 


384  NOTES 

we  have  made  supra,  p.  119,  from  Mommsen's  Roman  History  (ii.  77), 
there  has  of  late  been  revealed  a  strong  inclination  both  to  lessen 
the  significance  of  slavery  in  the  ancient  world  and  to  set  the 
position  of  slaves  in  a  much  more  favourable  light.  Beloch  and 
Edward  Meyer  maintain  that  free  workmen  were  employed  to  a 
large  extent  in  ancient  industrial  concerns.  This  view  finds  strong 
support,  so  far  as  Egypt  is  concerned,  in  U.  Wilcken's  Ostraka,  i. 
^^b  ff.  ;  cf.  C.  Wachsmuth,  Jahrb.  fiir  Nat.-Oek.,  74,  IQOO,  798. 
Edward  Meyer  compares  the  state  of  affairs  in  the  East  at  the 
present  day  in  the  matter  of  polygamy  and  slavery,  which  are  quite 
confined  to  the  higher  classes.  But  it  must  have  been  somewhat 
different  in  the  ancient  world.  To  be  personally  waited  upon  and 
accompanied  by  slave  attendants  was  a  feature  in  the  life  of  even 
the  humblest  people.  The  numbers  given  by  Athenaeus  (see  note 
1)  are  possibly  too  high.  Beloch  calculates  for  Rome  (Jahrb.,  68, 
1897,  332  f )  at  most  200,000  to  300,000 ;  Friedlander  (i.  6l)  makes 
the  number  somewhat  highei*. 

This  view,  it  is  true,  does  not  harmonise  with  former  accounts 
of  the  contempt  of  handicrafts  and  Avorking  people  {cf.  E.  Rohde, 
Griech.  Roman,  200;  J.  Burckhardt,  Griech.  Kulturgesch.,  i.  152; 
Marquardt,  Privatleben,  "-,  401  f  ;  Friedlander,  i.  299 ;  also  J. 
Beloch,  Griech.  Geschichte,  i.  1893,  226).  Edward  Meyer  (Die 
wirthschaftliche  Entwicklung  des  Altertums,  in  Conrad's  Jahrb.  fiir 
Nat.-Oek.,  vol.  64,  1895,  p.  721)  explains  this  as  a  prejudice  due  to 
a  one-sided  use  of  the  sources  provided  by  philosophic  literature, 
and  refers  to  the  vd/xos  dpyta?,  which  punished  all  who  could  not 
make  it  clear  that  they  worked  for  their  living  ;  cf.  P.  Guiraud,  La 
main  d'oeuvre  industrielle  dans  I'ancienne  Grece,  Paris,  1900.  It  is 
possible  that  the  Greek  contempt  for  labour,  the  lazy  idling  of  the 
proletariat  in  opposition  to  the  labouring  hordes  of  slaves,  has  often 
been  exaggei'ated,  yet  it  cannot  be  denied  entirely.  To  place 
everything  on  the  level  of  present-day  conditions  is  dangerous, 
however  valuable  the  comparison  may  be. 

On  the  question  of  the  treatment  of  slaves,  see  especially 
Friedlander,  i.  479  ff  Slaves  meet  us  in  all  possible  positions  and 
callings,  as  charioteers,  gladiators,  actors,  artists,  musicians  {ibid., 
ii.  327,  ?>^'o,  468;  iii.  295,  351);  Hermippus  of  Berytus  (second 
century  a.d.)  wrote  Tre/ot  toiv  StaTrpeij/dvTuiv  iv  TraiSeta  8ovXwv. 
There  is  an  important  distinction  to  be  made  between  slaves  within 
the  house  giving  personal  service  to  their  master,  slaves  without 
in  factories    and    independent    businesses,  and  slaves  engaged    on 


NOTES  385 

estates.  The  last-named,  who,  without  doubt,  had  the  most 
miserable  lot,  are  hardly  concerned  at  all  in  Christianity,  which  was 
chiefly  confined  to  towns.  Legally  the  slave  is  and  remains  res 
corporalis,  even  when  he  is  to  be  counted  as  a  personal  member 
of  the  familia  (Gains,  2,  13  ;  Karlowa,  Rom.  Rechtsgesch.,  II.  1, 
100  fF.).  He  is  under  quite  a  different  set  of  laws,  e.g.,  trial  by 
torture,  severer  penalties  (Mommsen,  Rom.  Sti'afrecht,  41 6  f.,  1032). 
For  peculium,  cf.  Karlowa,  loc.  cit.,  112  f.,  for  release,  128  ff. ;  for 
redemption,  Dittenberger,  Sylloge,  ii.^  69O  ff.,  835  ff.  ;  for  the  right 
of  slaves  to  join  a  separate  body  volentibus  dominis,  Digesta,  47,  22, 
3,  §  2,  vide  Marquardt,  Privatleben  der  Romer,  ^,  189,  7  ;  Foucart, 
Associations  religieuses,  6  ff.  ;  Hatch- Harnack,  Gesellschaftsver- 
fassung,  p.  23,  note  14  ;  for  the  special  confession  of  slaves  and 
their  burial  according  to  its  rites,  J.  Bui'ckhardt,  Griech.  Kultur- 
gesch.,  ii.  134,  Herkenrath,  Studien  zu  den  griech.  Grabinschriften, 
49.  In  an  epigram  of  Dioscorides  (Anthol.  pal.,  vii.  l62,  Dvibner) 
a  Persian  slave  begs  his  master  to  commit  him  to  earth  and  not  to 
fire,  lest  the  latter  should  be  rendered  impure  ;  perhaps  the  passage 
in  Anthol.,  ed.  Jacobs,  iv.  p.  260,  No.  676,  is  to  be  understood  in 
the  same  way. 

The  influence  of  Christianity  on  slavery  may  in  older  time  have 
often  been  exaggerated.  Cf.  Wallon,  Joe.  cit.,  iii.^  358  ff.  ;  Mar- 
quardt, Privatleben,  2,  p.  194;  J.  Burckhardt,  Constantin,  2,  379  f- 
Of  abolition  or  even  of  cessation  we  cannot  speak.  Slavery  con- 
tinued in  the  Christian  empire  until  it  was  removed  in  the  Teutonic 
lands  through  a  different  legal  form,  viz.,  bond-service.  The  Church 
did  not  even  press  for  emancipation.  In  the  Acts  of  Peter  and 
Andrew,  chap.  20,  p.  126  (Bonnet),  Onesiphorus  offers  to  release 
his  slaves  in  exchange  for  the  power  to  work  miracles,  but  Peter 
refers  him  to  faith.  The  instances  in  Acta  Petri,  chap.  28,  p.  77, 
and  in  Acta  Philippi,  chap.  8 1 ,  p.  32,  are  exceptional.  There  is 
nowhere  any  indication  that  the  emancipation  of  Hermas  was 
connected  with  his  or  his  mistress's  being  a  Christian.  The 
following  are  known  examples  of  Christian  slaves  :  from  the  second 
century,  Callixtus,  afterwards  bishop  (Hippolytus,  Refut.,  ix.  12); 
from  the  fourth  century,  Jerome's  fellow-traveller  Hylas  {cf.  Griitz- 
macher,  Hieronymus,  i.  148  f ).  De  Rossi,  Bulletino  di  archeologia 
cristiana,  i.  1874,  pp.  49-67  {cf.  Bull,  del  instituto,  1880,  10),  has 
gathered  together  the  neck-irons  of  runaway  slaves  ;  these  often 
bear  Christian  emblems,  and  belong  to  the  post-Constantine  period, 
when  branding  was  forbidden. 

«5 


386  NOTES 

Edward  Meyer's  sentence^  "  Soon  after  Aristotle  this  thought 
(that  slavery  is  unnatural  and  based  on  a  human  ordinance)  came 
to  general  recognition  along  with  the  idea  of  humanity ;  Christian- 
ity only  repeated  and  gave  religious  formulation  to  what  was  the 
common  property  of  the  whole  period"  (Jahrb.  der  Gehe-Stiftung, 
1899^  P-  224),  and  the  statement  that  slavery  died  out  gradually  and 
solely  through  the  reformation  of  economic  conditions  (Conrad's 
Jahrb.,  64,  1895,  749),  exaggerate  just  as  much  on  the  other  side. 
They  are  views  which  are  the  outcome  of  a  materialistic  method  of 
writing  history,  and  mistake  the  significance  of  the  moral  considera- 
tions, the  inward  alteration  of  the  condition  along  with  the  outward 
maintenance  of  the  form.  The  philosophic  doctrines  of  stoicism 
did  not  accomplish  what  Lactantius  (v.  152)  could  with  right  say  of 
Christianity,  that  there  was  there  no  distinction  between  poor  and 
rich,  slave  and  master.  The  Epistle  to  Philemon  gives  us  an 
example  of  the  actual  advantage  which  the  Christian  slave  enjoyed. 
The  complete  proof  of  the  high  valuation  of  the  slave  is  supplied  in 
the  note  of  Aristides  to  the  effect  that  the  Christians  take  pains  to 
win  their  slaves  to  the  faith,  and  then  straightway  call  them 
brethren.  This  is  not  done  by  compulsion,  but  by  persuasion. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  there  are  heathen  slaves  in  Christian  houses, 
e.g.,  in  Lyons  (Euseb.,  Hist.  Eccles.,  V.  i.  14). 

For  the  repudiation  of  slavery  in  ascetic  societies,  cf.  Philo  de 
vita  contemplativa,  pp.  109  f^  Conybeare.  In  the  tenth  Speech  of 
Dion  of  Prusa  (i.  107  f.,  v.  Arnim),  Diogenes  develops  the  utilitarian 
morality  that  a  bad  slave  should  rather  be  allowed  to  escape. 
The  pains  taken  to  recover  an  escaped  slave  are  often  treated  in 
comedy  and  satire.  As  regards  legal  aspects,  cf.  Marquardt,  Privat- 
leben,  ",  pp.  1 84  f.  These  show  decisively  that  Onesimus  sought 
out  Paul  directly  as  advocate. 

Against  the  conception  that  Paul  demanded  legal  emancipation 
of  Philemon,  tide  Weizsacker,  Jahrb.  f.  deutsche  Theologie,  xxi.  20. 
The  decisive  point  is  that  the  exegesis  of  the  ancient  church  here 
finds  the  very  opposite :  maintenance  of  slavery,  inde  Zahn  on 
Chrysostom.,  Gesch.  d.  N.  Tl.  Kanons,  i.  637,  note. 

The  remark  in  Philemon  13  that  Paul  would  have  been  glad  to 
keep  Onesimus  for  personal  service  is  to  be  taken  quite  literally. 
This  being  served  by  slaves,  children  or  young  men,  plays  a  larger 
role  than  is  often  admitted.  In  this  way  John  Mark's  being  a 
vTrrjpeTY]?  (Acts  xiii.  5)  and  the  Xetrovpyia  of  Epaphroditus  are  to  be 
understood ;  cf.  also  Acta  Petri,  chap.  3,  p.  48,  where  two  young 


NOTES  387 

men  are  given  to  Paul  to  accompany  him  to  Spain.  "  Even  Virgil's 
fancy  would  have  halted  had  he  had  no  slave  to  wait  on  him,  and 
no  tolerable  dwelling-place/'  says  Juvenal,  vii.  69  ff- ;  Friedlander, 
Sittengesch.j  iii.**  p.  432. 

3.  THE  DIVINE  JUDGMENT  IN  CORINTH  (pp.  44-52). 

The  view  which  I  have  presented  above  requires  some  justifica- 
tion. At  present  there  is  tolerable  agreement  among  exegetes  as 
to  the  nature  of  the  case  of  incest  concerned  ;  it  was  marriage  (not 
only  an  immoral  relationship)  with  the  stepmother  (probably  not 
belonging  to  the  Church)  after  the  father's  death.  The  father  is 
not  mentioned  (dStKr/^eVro?,  II.  vii.  12,  does  not  refer  to  him  as 
J.  Lightfoot  thinks)  ;  the  woman  is  not  brought  to  book  ;  the  word 
"mother"  is  not  employed  ;  ywoLKa  €;^€t  means  real  marriage. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  instances  which  have  been  adduced 
require  thorough  revision.  The  more  recent  commentaries  content 
themselves  with  references  to  Wettstein,  Lightfoot,  Schottgen^e  tc, 
who  have  brought  together  cases  of  the  most  diverse  nature  without 
critical  investigation  of  them.  The  two  sets  of  instances  which 
follow  cannot  be  placed  in  the  same  category : — (1)  The  forbidding 
of  marriage  with  one's  own  mother.  Lev.  xviii.  7 :  Pythagoras, 
lamblichus,  Vita  Pythag.,  chap.  31,  §  210,  p.  149,  Nauck ;  Lysis 
the  Pythagorean  (contemporary  of  Plato,  if  genuine ;  cf.  Zeller, 
Geschichte  der  griech.  Phil.,  ^,  I.  i.  p.  294),  ibid.,  chap.  17,  §§  77  f. 
p.  57;  Julian,  adv.  Christ,  i.  p.  184,  1.  4,  Neumann;  Aelian,  Hist. 
Anim.,  iii.  47  (on  camels)  ;  and  also  the  admission  of  such  a  mai'riage 
among  the  Persians,  Clem.,  Hom.,  xix.  I9,  Sext.  Empir.  Pyrrhon. 
Hypot.,  i.  chap.  152,  p.  35,  1.  14,  Bekker ;  cases  of  similar  incest, 
e.g.,  in  the  story  of  CEdipus  and  its  numerous  parallels,  as  well  as 
its  defence  by  Zeno  and  Chrysippus,  Clem.,  Hom.,  v.  1  S,  Sext.  Empir. 
adv.  Mathem.,  xi.  19 1  f  (2)  Instances  of  an  adulterous  relation- 
ship with  the  stepmother  in  the  lifetime  of  the  father :  Reuben, 
Gen.  XXXV.  22,  xlix.  4;  Absalom,  2  Sam.  xvi.  21  ;  Amyntor's  son 
Phcenix,  Iliad,  i.  447-461  ;  Anchemolus,  son  of  Rhoetus,  Vergil, 
Aen.,  X.  388  f,  with  the  commentary  by  Servius ;  Agathocles'  son 
Archagathus,  Diodorus,  Siculus,  XX.  xxxiii.  5  (iv.  p.  185,  Dindorf), 
Anatozadus,  son  of  Chosroes,  Procop.,  bell,  gotth.,  iv.  10  (ii.  504, 
Bonnet) ;  the  oft-told  tale  of  the  love-sickness  of  the  son,  to  whom 
the  father,  on  the  advice  of  the  physician,  makes  over  his  own  wife, 
e.g.,  Antiochus,  son  of  Seleucus  and  Stratonice  (cf.  E.  Rohde,  Griech. 


388  NOTES 

Roman,  ^,p.  52  and  p.  31,  note  4).  [The  citation  of  Philip  of  Mace- 
donia in  Eisner,  Observ.  Sacr.,  1728,  ii.  90  f,  rests  on  a  misunder- 
standing of  the  text  in  Justin,  Hist.,  VIII.  iii.  10.] 

For  the  case  before  us  we  can  properly  adduce  only  (l)  the 
terms  of  Jewish  law,  which  in  this  section  is  only  a  comparatively 
late  transformation  of  the  ancient  custom  of  Israel.  (Nowack, 
Lehrbuch  der  Hebraischen  Archaologie,  i.  342),  in  Deut.  xxiii.  1, 
xxvii.  20  ;  and  (P.)  Lev.  xviii.  28,  xx.  1 1  (penalty  of  death)  ;  cf.  Philo 
de  Spec.  Leg.,  II.  cccii.  42  (Mangey)  :  ovSe  Trpoyovw  TeXevrrja-ai/Tos 
Traxjoos  ayecrOai  fxiqTpviav  i<f)rJK€ ;  Sanhedrin,  vii.  4  :  isti  sunt  lapidandi : 
qui  coit  cum  inatre  sua  .  .  .  .  et  qui  coit  cum  uxore  patris  sui  .... 
sive  vivus  sit  pater  sive  mortuus  [Rabbi  Akiba  taught  that  this  was 
allowed  to  the  Proselyte  (Maimonides,  Jebamoth,982)];  cf.  Wettstein, 
Lightfoot,  Schottgen  on  1  Cor.  5  ;  Saalschiitz,  Mosaisches  Recht,  ^^ 
766  f.  Gregory  the  Great,  in  his  instructions  to  Augustine  for  the 
Church  of  England,  quotes  Lev.  xviii.  8.  :  cum  noi'erca  misceri  grave 
est  facinus,  quia  et  in  lege  scriptum  est  (Beda,  Hist.  Eccles.,  27). 
Cases  of  transgression :  Adonijah  and  Abishag,  1  Kings  ii.  1 3  ff.  ; 
Ezek.  xxii.  10  f.  (2)  Roman  law  forbids  marriage  between 
ascendants  and  descendants,  even  in  the  case  of  adoption  (Gaius, 
i.  59;,  Dig-,  xxiii.  2,  14;  Mommsen,  Rom.  Strafrecht,  685).  "The 
relation  between  parents-in-law  and  children-in-law  and  between 
step-parents  and  step-children,  as  caused  by  marriage  and  approxi- 
mating to  filiation,  during  the  existence  of  the  causing  marriage, 
constitutes  an  aggravation  by  adding  incest  to  adultery,  and 
remains  incest  even  when  the  marriage  is  dissolved"  (Mommsen,  686; 
cf.  Gaius,  i.  &S  and  elsewhere ;  Institutio,  I.  x.  7). 

Concubinage  with  a  father's  concubine  is  prope  nefarium 
(Ulpianus,  Dig.,  xxv.  1 ,  i.  3),  and  marriage  with  her  invalid  since 
the  time  of  Alex.  Severus,  C.  v.,  iv.  4  ;  cf.  the  Syriac-Roman  Book 
of  Law,  Bruns  and  Sachan,  §  109>  pp.  23  and  280.  Sexual  inter- 
course between  ascendants  and  descendants  is  considered  incest, 
whether  without  or  with  the  form  of  marriage  (Mommsen,  687) ; 
the  penalty  is  deportation,  seldomer  death  (688) ;  an  appeal  to 
ignorance  of  the  law  in  the  case  of  such  marriages  as  were  already 
forbidden  by  the  moral  law  (inoribus  or  jure  gentium^  is  not 
recognised  (687).  An  exceptional  case  is  that  of  Hermogisclus,  a 
pi'ince  of  the  Varnes,  who  on  his  death-bed  engaged  his  son 
Rodiger  to  his  own  second  wife,  a  sister  of  the  French  prince 
Theudibert :  ivvoiKL^eaOo}  rfj  ^rp-pvia,  KaOavep  6  Trarptos  r/fui'  i<f>Lr](rL 
vd/xos,  Procopius,  Bell.   Gotth.,  iv.   20    (ii.    562,    11,   Bonn.).      The 


NOTES  389 

very  frequently  adduced  passage  of  .Elius  Spartianus^  Vita 
Antonini  Caracallae,  x.  1-4  {cf.  Aurelius  Victor,  21  ;  Eutropius,  viii. 
20 ;  Hieronynius,  chron.  ad  annum^  2232  ;  Orosius,  VII.  xviii.  2),  is 
considered  by  modern  ci*iticism  as  one  of  the  "  stupidities  of 
the  Historia  Augusta"  (Schiller,  Rom.  Kaisergesch.,  i.  2,  754, 
note  8  ;  cf.  Spanheim,  Diss,  de  prestantia  et  usu  numism.,  ii.  1717, 
294.  Ranke,  Weltgesch.,  iii.  371).  We  have  therefore  only  three 
known  cases  left.  Of  these  the  one  in  1  Kings  ii.  13  is  punished 
not  as  incest  but  as  rebellion ;  apart  from  the  political  aspect, 
Adonijah's  lust  does  not  seem  to  have  raised  moral  indignation, 
Ezek.  xxii.  10  f.  contends,  from  the  standpoint  of  advanced  moi*al 
perception,  against  ancient  popular  usage,  while  in  the  case  of  the 
Varnes  the  legitimacy  of  the  marriage  is  expressly  stated.  In  the 
strict  sense,  accordingly,  we  have  no  quite  analogous  instance. 

The  strangeness  of  such  an  incest  in  the  Christian  Church  has 
induced  Trigland  (de  Secta  Karaeorum,  1715,  141  ff.)  to  employ  the 
terms  of  Jewish  Proselyte  law  in  order  to  explain  the  conduct  of 
the  incestuous  person.  As  the  later  Rabbis  did  not  consider  the 
marriage  of  a  Goi  as  marriage,  and  accordingly  adultery  with  the 
wife  of  such  an  one  as  sin  (Eisenmenger,  Entdecktes  Judentum, 
1700,  i.  432  f),  Maimonides  declares,  by  reference  to  R.  Akiba, 
that  the  Proselyte  is  not  bound  by  the  marriage  prohibitions.  Lev. 
xviii.  8  (xide  supra).  With  still  more  right,  if  there  was  any  such 
explanation  required,  could  cynical  and  stoical  theories  be  adduced, 
which,  throwing  over  the  notion  of  incest,  must  occasion  a  com- 
plete confusion  of  the  moral  judgment.  The  single  case,  however, 
demands  no  founding  upon  a  theory.T  hat  it  was  no  isolated 
instance  cannot  be  proved  by  2  Cor.  xiii.  2  (against  Weizsacker, 
Jahrb.  f.  deutsche  Theol.,  1876,  31). 

My  conception  of  the  Apostles'  attitude  towards  the  case  of 
incest  shows  two  points  of  departure  from  the  ordinary  view. 

In  the  first  place,  I  lay  more  sti-ess  on  the  character  of  the  penal 
miracle  in  connection  with  ancient  ideas  of  the  curse  and  its 
working.  Fide  Zoroastrianism  and  Primitive  Christianity,  Rev.  James 
Moffat,  D.D.,  Hibbert  Journal,  vol.  i.,  p.  771  ;  E.  v.  Lasaulx,  Der 
Fluch  bei  Griechen  und  Romern,  1843  (only  useful  for  the 
material  collected,  unhappily  modern  in  theory :  the  curse  as 
the  will  projected  in  word,  the  hypnotising  power  of  the  will, 
etc.);  K.  Wachsmuth,  Rhein.  Mus.,  1863,  539;  1864,  481; 
Kretschmar,  Aus  der  Anomia,  1 890  ;  R.  Wiinsch,  Die  sethianischen 
Verfluchungstafeln    aus     Rom,     1898;     idem    Corp.     inscr.     Attic. 


390  NOTES 

Append.,  1897  ;  A.  Schiirer,  Geschichte  des  Judischen  Volkes,  ^,  iii. 
p.  298.  These  tables,  now  found  in  great  numbers,  with  private 
curses  are  all  to  be  understood  from  the  presupposition  that  the 
divinity  appealed  to,  in  case  of  the  forbidden  thing  having 
happened,  will  immediately  intervene,  in  the  same  way  as  it  is 
often  accepted  that  perjury  causes  sickness  (Herodot.,  iv.  68  f.). 
Famous  instances  of  public  curse  are :  The  curse  pronounced  on 
Hippolytus  by  Theseus  (Euripides,  Hipp.,  888  ff.),  where,  in  case 
death  should  not  at  once  occur,  exile  is  added ;  the  curse  pro- 
nounced on  Alcibiades  by  the  Eumolpidae  (Lysias,  Orat.,  vi.  51  ; 
Diodorus,  xiii.  69  ;  Plutarch,  Alcib.,  xxii.  33  ;  Corn.  Nepos,  Alcib.,  iv. 
5,  vi.  5  ;  Maximus  Tyr.,  xii.  6 ;  Suidas,  sub  voce,  'EvfjioX-rriSaL,  i.  897). 
In  Jewish  law  we  have  here  the  so-called  "  bitter  water  that  causeth 
the  curse "  associated  with  suspicion  of  adultery  (Num.  v.  11  ff.  ; 
cf.  Nowack,  Archaol.,  ii.  251),  a  practice  which  had  its  analogues  in 
the  tests  of  purity  among  the  Greeks,  and  whose  persistence  is 
proved  through  its  adoption  in  the  series  of  legends  that  constitute 
the  apocryphal  gospels  of  the  childhood  (Protev.  Jac.  l6;  Ps.- 
Matthew  xii.  ;  cf.  Hermas,  Sim.,  VIII.  i.  5).  Sudden  judgments 
of  God  following  a  prophetic  threat  we  have  in  Jer.  xxviii. 
1 6  f.  :  Hananiah  dies  within  two  months  ;  in  1  Mace.  ix.  54  f .  : , 
Alcimus,  the  temple  violator,  has  a  shock  and  dies ;  Acts  xii.  23  : 
Agrippa  I.  dies  on  account  of  blasphemy ;  Acts  xiii.  1 1  :  sudden 
blindness ;  Acts  v.  1  ff.  :  sudden  death  (Ananias  and  Sapphira). 
Sudden  death  is  also  indicated  in  the  TrapaSovvai  tw  o-arava  eis 
oXeOpov  rrj'i  crapKos.  What  seems  to  point  in  the  opposite  direction, 
iVa  crwO-rj  to  irvevfjia  Iv  Trj  yjfjiipq.  tov  KVptov  Irjo'ov,  is  not  to  be 
psychologically  understood  as  the  modern  view  would  have  it. 
Death  itself  frees  the  spirit  (placed  in  Christians  by  God)  from  the 
flesh,  and  thereby  saves  it.  There  can  even  be  put  to  account  a 
moi'al  working  of  death  on  the  individual  himself  We  know  too 
little  of  the  views  which  were  held  on  the  state  of  the  soul  after 
death.  In  the  Acta  Thomae  (I.  6,  8,  pp.  7  ff..  Bonnet),  in  the  case 
of  a  miraculous  punishment  of  sudden  death  there  is  an  express 
statement  of  the  prospect  of  forgiveness  in  the  future  world. 
There  is  also  a  short  period  on  earth  for  repentance,  if  the  case  is 
understood  on  the  analogy  of  the  miraculous  punishment  recorded 
by  Marcus  Diaconus  in  the  life  of  Bishop  Porphyrius  of  Gaza, 
chap.  89  f ,  p-  72  f ,  ed.  Teubn :  Porphyrius  pi-onounces  a  curse  on 
Julia,  a  blaspheming  Manichean  prophetess,  who  immediately 
begins  to   tremble,  to    alter    her    expression,    loses    the    power   of 


NOTES  391 

recollection,  and  dies  after  some  hours ;  Act.  Peti'i  c.  Simone, 
2,  p.  46,  Lipsius  :  Rufina,  to  whom  Paul  denied  admission  to  the 
Lord's  Supper  on  account  of  adultery,  suffers  a  stroke  which 
paralyses  her  left  side   and  her  tongue. 

In  this  deliverance  to  Satan  (I.  v.  4)  we  are  not  to  understand 
any  special  apostolical  power  (Schottgen),  any  more  than  a  specific 
Jewish  fonnula  of  excommunication,  the  great  ban  (Selden,  Light- 
foot).  The  mention  of  God's  giving  Job  over  to  Satan  (Redpath, 
Expos.,  1898,  287  ff.)  introduces  heterogeneous  material.  In  1  Tim. 
i.  20  the  form  is  employed  with  diffex'ent  and  weakened  significa- 
tion :  there  the  Apostle  alone  appears  as  agent  without  any  help 
from  the  Church ;  the  occasion  is  not  a  moral  offence,  but  a 
question  of  belief;  the  purpose  is  (bodily)  discipline  with  a  view  to 
improvement,  not  annihilation  of  the  flesh.  This  sense  of  officimn 
potnitentia;,  torturing  of  the  flesh  through  fasting,  etc.,  was  attached 
by  the  Church  to  1  Cor.  v.  4,  so  early  as  the  indulgence-edict  of 
Callixtus  (RolfFs,  Texte  u.  Unters.,  xi.  3,  112,  also  81  fF.),  in  which 
II.  ii.  5  ff.  is  referi-ed  to  I.  v.  4.  For  later  ecclesiastical  applications 
of  1  Cor.  v.  4,  cf.  Thiimmel,  Die  Versagung  der  kirklichen  Bestat- 
tungsfeier,  1902,  82. 

The  second  point  to  which  I  attach  importance  is  the  religious- 
psychological  significance  of  the  non-appearance  of  the  nairaculous 
punishment.  That  the  operation  of  a  curse  can  be  prevented  was 
the  ordinary  view,  notwithstanding  Horace,  Epod.,  5,  89,  dira 
detestalio  nulla  expiatur  vtctima.  Pollux,  5,  131,  makes  a  simple 
classification  of  gods  into  those  that  undo  a  curse  and  those  that 
fulfil  it ;  cf.  Suidas,  sub  voce,  airoTpoTraio^ ;  Photius,  lexica,  sub  voce, 
Trpoo-T/DoVatos.  Only  it  was  necessaiy  that  those  who  pronounced 
the  curse  should  also  remove  it,  e.g.,  the  Eumolpidae  in  the  case  of 
Alcibiades  already  cited.  There  are  numerous  narratives  of  the 
averting  of  the  divine  /atJvis.  In  general  the  idea  is  one  of  cere- 
monial, as  in  the  story  of  Heliodorus,  II  Mace.  iii.  23  f.  On  the 
basis  of  the  prophetic  religion  of  Israel  the  moral  notion  of  con- 
version takes  its  place  (Joel  ii.  12  ff.,  Jer.  xviii.  7-10,  Ezek.  iii.  17- 
21,  Dan.  iv.  21  ff.).  The  pi-oblem  of  the  non-appearance  of  the 
threatened  curse  which  Plutarch  plagued  himself  with,  de  sera  num. 
vind.  (iii.  417  ff.,  Bernardakis)  finds  a  simple  solution  in  Jonah  iii., 
iv.  The  notion  is  all  the  more  likely  in  Paul,  because  in  the  moral 
purpose  of  the  miraculous  penalty  the  first  step  towards  it  has 
been  already  taken. 

The  interpretation  of  2   Cor.  ii.  5-11,  vii.   8-12,  which  has  been 


392  NOTES 

in  vogue  since  the  time  of  Bleek^  and  construes  it  as  referring  to 
some  matter  of  offence,  avoids  the  supposed  difficulty  that  Paul 
himself  undoes  his  own  vigorous  interference^  but  only  at  a  two- 
fold sacrifice^  for  in  that  case  (1)  we  learn  nothing  of  the  issue  of 
the  incident  so  strictly  dealt  with  in  1.  v.^  and  (2)  we  must  construct 
a  new  incident  built  upon  the  one  word  dStKT^cras,  2  vii.  12.  How 
very  fanciful  that  would  be  we  can  learn  from  the  various 
interpretations  of  Bleek^  Ewald,  Hilgenfeld^  Weizsacker,  Schmiedel 
and  Jiilicher.  My  conception  has  points  of  contact  with  those  of 
Klopper,  Heinrici  and  Haupt  (Stud,  und  Krit.^  1895,  385  f). 

In  spite  of  Hilgenfeld's  objections  (Zeitschr.  f  wiss.  Theol.,  1899^ 
1  ff.),  I  think  the  acceptance  of  the  so-called  middle  journey  is 
well  warranted  by  2.  xiii.  1  and  xii.  14.  On  the  other  hand,  I  agree 
with  Hilgenfeld  in  regarding  chaps,  x.-xiii.  as  belonging  to  2  Cor.  ; 
I  cannot  find  any  place  for  an  intermediate  letter.  2  ii.  4,  vii. 
8  ff.,  refer  to  1  Cor.,  i.e.,  to  the  admonitory  parts  of  the  letter — above 
all,  chap.  V.  The  Corinthians  properly  felt  Paul's  agitation,  which 
modern  exegetes  deny.  Hence  their  assertion  that  only  Paul  felt 
hurt  by  the  scandal,  a  mistake  which  he  sets  right,  2  ii.  5.  In 
the  same  way  2  i.  15  f  points  back  to  1  xvi.  5  ff.  The  confusion 
in  this  case  arose  in  Corinth,  because  Timothy  arrived  there  with 
the  original  design,  which  seemed  better  suited  to  the  Corinthians, 
after  the  altered  plan  had  become  known  from  1  xvi.  5  ff.  This 
to  some  extent  explains  Timothy's  want  of  success. 

4.  JAMES,  THE  LORD'S  BROTHER. 

Literature  :— Hilgenfeld,  Einleitung  in  das  N.  T.,  1875,  520  ff.  ;— 
Lipsius,  Apokryphe  Apostelgeschichten,  II.  ^,  238  ff.  ; — Lightfoot, 
Galatians  ^^,  252  ff.  ; — Th.  Zahn,  Briider  und  Vettern  Jesu,  For- 
schungen  zur  Geschichte  des  N.  Tl.  Kanons,  vi.  1900,  225  ff. 

Even  if  Acts  i.  1 4  anticipates  events,  James,  we  may  say,  belonged 
from  the  beginning  to  the  Christian  community.  In  1  Cor.  xv.  7 
the  appearance  of  the  risen  Lord  to  James,  after  that  to  five 
hundred  brethren  at  once  (Whitsuntide),  marks  a  new  stage.  On 
the  occasion  of  Paul's  first  visit  in  37-38,  James  stood  alongside 
of  Peter,  Gal.  i.  19;  when  Peter  fled  in  44  he  was  the  recognized 
head  of  the  Church,  Acts  xii.  1 7  ;  at  the  Apostolical  Conference 
in  51  he  took  precedence  of  Peter  and  John,  Gal.  ii.  9-  The  view 
that  he  was  received  into  the  circle  of  the  Twelve  after  the  death 
in  44  of  his  namesake  the  son  of  Zebedee  is  suggested  by  com- 


NOTES  393 

parison  of  Gal.  ii.  9  with  Mark  v.  37,  ix.  2,  xiv.  33  (Hort,  Judaistic 
Christianity,  1894,  62,  and,  by  inference,  Holtzmann,  Einleitung, 
3,  473).  Acts  xii.  17,  however,  makes  it  somewhat  improbable, 
and  a  proper  conception  of  the  circle  of  the  Twelve  altogether  so. 
It  is  further  contradicted  by  the  ancient  tradition  in  accordance 
with  which  the  Lord's  brother  is  ordained  by  Peter,  James,  and 
John  immediately  after  the  resurrection  (Euseb.,  hist,  eccles.,  II.  i.  3, 
xxiii.  4).  The  position  of  James  can  be  explained  apart  fi-om  the 
vigour  of  his  character  and  personality  by  the  consideration  that 
he  was  the  Lord's  brother  and  the  eldest  of  the  four.  A  messianic- 
dynastic  idea,  the  representation  of  the  Messiah  through  his 
nearest  relative  (Cahph),  alone  explains,  if  not  the  historical,  at 
any  rate  the  legendary  position  of  this  James  (Reville,  Wernle, 
notwithstanding  Loofs'  contradiction) ;  the  office  of  eTrto-KOTros 
cVto-KoVwv  of  the  Clementines  far  exceeds  the  position  of  the 
monarchical  bishop ;  it  even  goes  beyond  the  metropolitan  of 
later  centuries  and  recalls  the  vicarius  Ckristi. 

The  famous  description  in  Hegesippus  is  frequently  dealt  with, 
perhaps  most  thoroughly  by  Lechler,  Apost.  Zeitalter,  ^,51  ff,  and 
lately  by  E.  Schwartz  in  Preuschen's  Zeitschrift  fiir  die  N.  T. 
Wiss.,  iv.,  1903,  48  ff.  Lechler  divides  it  into  five  elements,  but 
his  analysis  can  very  easily  be  simplified  into  the  two  constituents 
of  Nazaritism  and  priesthood.  For  Nazaritism  cf.  Nowack,  Hebr. 
Archaologie,  ii.  133  ff.  ;  Schiirer,  Gesch.  des  jiid.  Volkes,  ^,  iii.  120. 
Lifelong  Nazaritism  appears  to  have  been  exceptional  in  the  period, 
cf.  Luke  i.  15.  The  regulations  admit  of  vows  only  for  a  limited 
time.  Num.  \i.  (P.);  30  days,  Jos.,  Jewish  War,  ii.  313;  Mishna 
Tractatus  Nazir  Surenhus,  iii.  146  ff,  cf.  Acts  xxi.  23  f.,  xviii.  18. 
Abstinence  from  the  eating  of  flesh  is  not  a  tenet  of  Nazaritism, 
is  even  absolutely  forbidden  for  the  nomadic  Rechabites  ;  neither 
is  it  a  tenet  of  Essenism  (^vide  Note  5).  ov8e  efjuj/v^ov  et^aye 
(Jerome,  carnem  mdlam  comedit ;  Ruf.,  sed  neque  animal  manducavit) 
can,  it  is  true,  be  only  so  understood  in  accordance  with  Greek 
usage ;  but  perhaps  originally  only  abstinence  from  blood  and 
flesh  containing  blood  was  meant,  cj\  Gen.  ix.  4,  Kpeas  iv  aifxan 
•A^X^^'  Deut.  xii.  l6,  Acts  xv.  20,  29,  xxi.  25,  ai/xaros  kol  ttviktcov. 
efxxj/vxo'i  would  equal  €vai/x,os  (both  are  absent  in  Ixx.),  after  the 
parallel  in  Lev.  xvii.  11,  14.  Origen  too,  c.  Cels.,  viii.  30,  places 
(fjLxjrvxa  and  ttvlktol  close  together.  That  abstinence  from  impure 
flesh  which  was  binding  upon  every  Jew  is  here  mentioned  as  a 
special  feature  of  Nazaritism,  finds  its  parallel  in  Judges  xiii.  4,  7, 


394  NOTES 

14,  fjir]  (f)dyrj<s  ttSi/  aKaOapTov,  and  its  foundation  probably  in  the 
fact  that  the  command  was  not  quite  strictly  observed,  as  there 
are  frequent  complaints  of  violation  :  Zech.  ix.  7,  Is.  Ixv.  4,  Ixvi. 
3,  n,  Ez.  xxxiii.  25  M.T.,  1  Sam.  xiv.  32  f.  (for  these  passages  I 
am  indebted  to  my  colleague  Professor  Baentsch). 

In  the  avoidance  of  ointment  and  warm  baths  it  is  usual  to  see 
traces  of  Essenism.  Both  are,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  witnessed  for 
the  Essenes,  Jos.,  Jewish  War,  ii.  123,  129.  But  this  avoidance 
is  not  specifically  Essenic,  and  in  no  way  connected  with  the 
special  doctrine  of  this  order.  It  gives  expression  to  the  repudia- 
tion of  civilization  and  its  enervating  effects,  one  of  the  fundamental 
features  of  both  Nazaritism  and  Rechabitism.  Celibacy — also  a 
principle  of  Essenism — was  first  read  into  the  picture  given  in 
Hegesippus  by  Epiphanius,  and  is  probably  more  the  result  of 
his  own  ideal  of  sanctification  than  of  some  older  source.  The 
historical  James,  the  Lord's  brother,  was  married,  1  Cor.  ix.  5. 
Linen  garments  were  also  worn  by  the  Essenes  at  their  meals, 
Jos.,  Jewish  War,  ii.  129-  But  here  they  are  associated  with  the 
priestly  character  of  James,  Ezek.  xliv.  17,  Ex.  xxviii.  39,  42, 
xxxix.  28.  James  is  conceived  as  priest,  and  further  as  high- 
priest  ;  that  lies  in  the  privilege  belonging  solely  to  him  of 
entering  the  Holy  Place.  The  view  which  regards  it  as  only 
permission  granted  to  one  layman  of  saying  his  prayers  in  the 
temple  is  a  totally  modern  evasion.  On  the  question  of  the 
equality  of  Nazarites  and  High-priest  in  regard  to  holiness  in 
P.,  cf.  Nowack,  136.  The  Nazarite  is  called  in  Ixx.,  ev^djxevos, 
rjiy/xivos,  Num.  vi.  13  ff.,  which  means,  the  man  who  has  vowed, 
but  can  also  be  translated  the  man  who  prays,  since  ev^ecr^at 
stands  also  for  nj?;:!- 

The  name  w/JXt'a?,  for  which  Fuller  without  any  necessity  would 
write  w^Xtafi,  following  Ps.  xxix.  11,  is  explained  by  the  ancients 
from  oy  P?y,  vide  Suicer,  Thesaurus,  s.v.,  ii.,  1593,  TrepLox)],  Eus., 
T£t;;^os,  Epiph.,  (TKiTrrj,  Jobius  mon. ;  Hausrath,  N.  Tl.  Zeitge- 
schichte,  ii.,  ^,  329,  note  2,  derives  it  in  agreement  with  Lipsius, 
Apokr.  Apostelgesch.,  ii.,  2  part,  p.  240,  note,  from  i^J^^in,  with 
reference  to  Zech.  xi.  7,  14  (Ixx.  o-xoivicr/xa),  cf.  Herklotz, 
Zeitschrift  fiir  katholische  Theologie  (1903),  xxvii.   572. 

How  much  of  all  this  is  historical  and  how  much  an  ideal 
picture  it  is  hard  to  conclude.  The  6  ovofxaaOeU  vrro  TrdvTwv  8t/catos  of 
Hegesippus  is  to  be  taken  with  as  much  caution  as  the  tAvo  varying 
texts  of  Josephus,  both  of  which,  with  Schiirer,  i.,  ^,  581  f ,  I  consider 


NOTES  395 

interpolations.  In  any  case  the  formation  of  a  legend  is  quite 
intelligible,  and  all  the  more  so  by  consideration  of  the  remarkable 
parallels  which  meet  us  in  the  development  of  tradition  regarding 
this  James,  the  Lord's  brother,  and  John  of  Asia  Minor.  If  the 
oldest  Kerygma  names  Peter  as  the  first  witness  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion, 1  Cor.  XV.  5,  the  Christians  of  Asia  Minor  have  placed  the 
favourite  disciple  before  him,  John  xx.  4,  xxi.  7,  while  those  in 
Palestine  have  given  the  preference  to  the  Lord's  brothei-.  Gospel 
of  the  Hebr.  apud  Jer.  de  viris  illustribus,  2.  [Clemens  Alex., 
Hypot.  apud  Eus.,  hist,  eccles.,  II.  i.  4,  mentions  James  before 
John  and  Peter  among  those  who  were  entrusted  with  the  gnosis 
after  the  Resurrection.]  To  both  also  at  the  last  supper  a 
prominent  participation  was  attributed  (as  unhistorical,  I  believe, 
in  the  case  of  James  as  in  the  case  of  John  of  Asia  Minor,  who  is 
to  be  distinguished  from  the  son  of  Zebedee).  Both  appear  as 
high-priestly  figures.  On  James,  vide  Hegesippus,  and  in  con- 
firmation, Epiph.  Ixxviii.  14;  on  John,  v«rfe  Polycrates  of  Ephesus, 
Upevs  TO  TreVaAov  7r€<f>opr]Km.  Both  are  unmarried.  On  John,  vide  the 
ancient  prologue  in  Corssen,  Texte  und  Unters.,  xv.  1,  6,  75  ff. ;  on 
James,  it  is  true,  no  one  earlier  than  Epiph.  (i\  supra).  The  special 
position  of  James  as  eTrt'crKOTros  twv  eTrio-KOTrwv  finds  its  analogy  in  the 
extended  authority  of  the  Ephesian  presbyter  over  all  the  Christian 
communities  of  Asia  Minor.  These  parallels  are  most  instructive, 
because  they  provide  us  with  an  objective  view  of  the  origin  and 
growth  of  local  tradition  in  two  important  provincial  Churches. 

That  the  so-called  apostolical  decree  really  originated  with 
this  James  and  the  presbyters  associated  with  him  I  consider 
very  probable,  though  I  cannot  accept  Weizsacker's  special 
combination  with  the  episode  at  Antioch,  Gal.  ii.  1 1  ff.,  vide  Apost. 
Zeitalter,  2^  180  f  ;  M'Giffert,  Apost.  Ages,  215  f.  From  Acts  xxi. 
25 — a  "we"  section — the  unprejudiced  reader  gains  the  impres- 
sion that  this  is  an  entirely  new  experience  of  Paul ;  cf. 
Harnack,  Sitz.-Berichte  der  BerUner  Akademie,  1899,  xi.  l68  f. 
As  regards  the  two  recensions  of  the  Apostolical  decree,  cf. 
against  Blass,  Hilgenfeld,  Zahn  ;  Corssen,  Gott.  gelehrte  Anzeigen, 
1896,442  f  ;  Weiss,  Texte  u.  Unters.  Neue  Folge,  ii.  1,  108  f  ; 
Harnack,  loc.  cit. ;  Wendt  in  Meyer's  Commentary,  ^,  p.  50.  The  later 
recension  avoided  the  confusing  mixture  of  moral  and  ceremonial 
elements  discussed  above  (pp.  152  f )  by  omitting  ttvlktov,  and  insert- 
ing instead  at  the  end  the  so-called  golden  rule  (Matt.  vii.  12  in 
negative   form).     Origen,  loc.  cit.,  endeavours  to  justify  the  single 


396  NOTES 

items  by  a  process  of  Christian  reasoning.  The  non-mention  of 
the  Sabbath  (Zahn,  Skizzeii;,  ^,  208)  is  natural  when  we  consider 
the  aim  of  the  letter. 


5.  VEGETARIANISM   AMONG   THE   ANCIENTS 
(pp.    126-128). 

The  vegetarianism  of  Pythagoras  is  legendary.  As  a  tenet  of  his 
school  it  can  be  traced  to  Orphic  influences,  vide  Zeller,  Geschichte 
der  griech.  Philosophic,  i.,  ^,  317  ff.  (espec.  318,  note  5).  In  Empe- 
docles  (ibid.,  806"  ff.)  the  prohibition  of  flesh  is  certainly  a  feature  of 
the  doctrine  of  transmigration.  For  the  vita  orphica,  cf.  Lobeck, 
Aglaophamus,  245  ff.  Plutarch  wrote  two  books  Trept  o-apKo^ayc'as 
(BernadakiSj  vi.  101  ff.  ;  preceded  by  the  Tractate  irepl  tov  to.  aXoya 
Adyo)  xP'^tr^at)  ;  Porphyrius  four,  Trept  (Ittox^s  ifxij/vxt^y-  It  was  opposed 
in  general  by  Peripatetics,  Stoics,  and  Epicureans,  and  was  advocated 
by  the  New  Pythagoreans,  along,  however,  with  individual  teachers 
of  those  other  schools,  as,  e.g.,  the  Peripatetic  Theophrastus  and  the 
Stoics  Sextius  and  Sotion,  Zockler,  Askese,  and  Monchtum,  ^,  107  ; 
Androcydes  apud  Clem.  Alex.,  Strom.,  VII.  vi.  34 ;  Plutarch,  De 
Tranq.  Animi,  xiii.  ;  Stobaeus,  xxi.  l6.  Seneca  was  for  some  time 
in  his  youth  a  vegetarian  on  the  advice  of  his  teacher  Sotion.  He 
enjoyed  good  health,  but  gave  it  up  to  avoid  the  suspicion  of 
belonging  to  a  foreign  cult  (Epistola,  cviii.  21).  For  Apollonius 
(cf.  also  his  Epp.,  8  and  43)  and  Heliodorus,  vide  E.  Rohde,  der 
griechische  Roman,  ^,  440.  Apart  from  the  mention  of  Ethiopic 
gymnosophists  (as  a  rule  Ethiopia  and  India  are  to  be  reckoned 
as  one),  the  rejection  of  the  bloody-offering  for  a  divine  worship  by 
means  of  incense  and  prayers  (cf.  on  this  point  also  Test.  xii.  Patr. 
Levi.,  iii.)  seems  here  to  point  to  Indian  influences.  For  the  active 
traffic  of  the  countries  bordering  on  the  Mediterranean  with  India, 
vide  Rohde,  griech.  Novellendichtung,  57  =  Roman,  2,  581.  In 
Buddhism  the  slaughter  of  no  living  thing  is  the  painfully-observed 
first  command  of  the  fivefold  rectitude,  vide  H.  Oldenburg,  Buddha, 
1881,  296  f.  Nevertheless  vegetarianism  is  prior  to  Buddhism, 
Zockler,  Askese,  u.  Monchtum,  ^,  36  f.  The  Brahmins  are  referred 
to  in  the  Recog.  Clem.,  ix.  20,  and  the  Seres  in  viii.  48. 

Vegetarianism  as  a  principle  is  not  attested  on  Jewish  ground, 
and  in  view  of  Gen.  ix.  3,  Deut.  xii.  15,  hardly  to  be  expected. 
The  prohibition  of  flesh  and  wine  among  the  Essenes,  who  were 
divided  upon  the  question  of  marriage-repudiation,  is  rightly  dis- 


NOTES  397 

puted  (notwithstanding  Zockler,  Askese^  ^^  126)  by  Lucius  and 
Schurei%  Gesch.  des  jiid.  Volkes,  ^,  ii.  569,  because,  apart  from  a 
worthless  notice  in  Jerome,  adv.  Jovin.,  ii.  14,  no  evidence  in 
favour  of  it  can  be  adduced,  and  probabilities  are  rather  against 
it.  In  4  Ezra  ix.  24,  xii.  51,  the  temporary  restriction  to  a 
vegetable  diet  is  only  a  small  part  of  the  complete  fasting  com- 
manded as  preparation  for  the  ecstatic  state,  v.  13,  vi.  31.  Similarly 
the  limitation  of  Jewish  priests  to  figs  and  nuts  (Jos.,  vita,  iii.  14) 
is  only  a  temporary  and  precautionary  step  against  pollution  by 
heathen  foods.  Among  Nazarites  there  was  no  abstinence  from 
flesh  observed ;  this  followed  from  their  relationship  with  the 
nomadic  Rechabites.  When,  therefore,  it  is  mentioned  in  Hege- 
sippus'  desci'iption  of  James  the  Just  (Euseb.,  hist,  eccles.,  II.  xxiii.  5) 
that  ovSk  eixxj/vxov  e^aye,  we  must  understand  it  in  the  sense  of  flesh 
containing  blood,  i.e.,  not  killed  according  to  the  Jewish  method, 
and  hence  unclean  (cf.  supra,  note  4).  The  vegetarianism  of  the 
Philonic  Therapeutse  (de  vita  contempl.,  p.  74,  113,  Conybeare) 
shows  only  influences  of  the  Orphic  circles,  which  were  very 
numerous  in  Egypt. 

It  is  in  Egypt  that  we  discover  the  first  traces  of  it  on  Christian 
soil ;  for  the  Gospel  of  the  Egyptians  (^Tracrav  cfaiye  f^ordvrjv,  t^v  8e 
TTLKpiav  exovcrav  /xrj  cfxiyr]';),  vide  Wobbermin,  Religionsgeschichtliche 
Studien,  97  f  ;  Clemens  Alex.,  Paed.,  II.  i.  11,  even  ventures  to 
place  Paul  and  the  Pythagoreans  together.  In  the  Gospel  of  the 
Ebionites  (Epiphanius,  haer.,  xxx.,  13,  22)  the  locusts  of  John  are 
removed  and  the  Passover  is  repudiated  by  Jesus,  Resch,  Agrapha, 
344,  406,  in  the  same  way  as  Tatian  altered  the  seven  years  of 
Anna's  marriage  into  seven  days,  Luke  ii.  36 ;  cf'.  F.  C.  Burkitt, 
"St.  Ephraim's  Quotations  from  the  Gospel,"  p.  41.  As  regards 
the  Encratites,  vide  G.  Kriiger  in  Real.  Encycl.,  ^,  v.  392  f.,  who 
rightly  rejects  the  conception  of  them  as  a  sect ;  they  represented 
tendencies  that  were  to  be  found  among  the  most  various  heads  of 
schools  (e.g.,  Tatian,  Julius  Cassianus),  and  were  not  foreign  to  the 
Catholic  Church,  although  in  principle  this  latter  always  opposed 
them,  vide  1  Tim.  iv.  3  ff.  Musanus  wrote  against  the  Encratites, 
Eus.,  hist,  eccles.,  iv.  28  (about  180).  There  was  among  the  martyrs 
of  Lyons  and  Vienna  an  Encratite  Alcibiades,  who  gave  up  this  mode 
of  life  on  the  ground  of  a  revelation  which  was  made  to  Attalus,  his 
fellow-sufferer  (Eus.,  hist,  eccles.,  V.  iii.  2  f ).  In  the  Liber  Pontif. 
there  is  a  note  under  Eleutherus  worth  noticing  for  Rome  (p.  17, 
Mommsen ;  taken  over  in  the  Martyrol.   Rom.,  26th  May),  ei  hoc 


398  NOTES 

constituit  (JP.  Jirmavit)  ut  nulla  esca  {iisualis)  a  Christianis  repudiaretur 
maximejidelibus,  quod  deus  creavit,  quae  tamen  rationalis  et  humana  est 
(cf.  Schwegler,  Montanismus,  277,  note  78). 

The  descriptions  of  the  asceticism  of  the  Apostles  given  in  the 
apocryphal  Acts  go  as  a  rule  beyond  vegetarianism.  They  live  as 
saints  and  cynics  like  that  wilderness  saint  Bannus,  with  whom 
Josephus  in  his  youthful  asceticism  studied  (vita,  ii.  11).  Peter 
says,  panis  mihi  solus  cum  olivis  et  raro  etiam  cum  oleribus  in  usu 
est  (Rec.  Clem.,  vii.  6,  Migne,  Ser,  Gr.,  i.,  1357;  cf.  ix.  6,  aqua  et 
pane  uteniibus);  also  Greg.,  Naz.  Or.,  xiv.  4,  Migne,  Ser.  Gr.,  35, 
86l,  c.  neVpos  a(TcrapLov  OepfJLOL<;  rpe^o/u-evo?,  and  Carm.,  10,  550,  Migne, 
Ser.  Gr.,  37,  720 ;  only  water,  bread,  and  one  garment  are  allowed 
the  Christian,  Clem.  Hom.,  xv.  7.  Following  this  also,  Epiph., 
hger.,  XXX.  15,  concerning  Peter  and  the  Ebionites.  Thomas  him- 
self eats  nothing  at  the  banquet,  5,  p.  1 0,  6,  Bonnet ;  aprov  icrdUt 
aovov  /xera  aXaros  koL  to  ttotov  avTov  v8wp  kol  (^opci  ev  i/xariov,  20, 
p.  131,  104,  p.  217;  to  his  followers  he  gives  aprov  kol  eXaiov  kol 
Xdxa-vov  Koi  aXas,  29,  p.  46.  On  his  journey  to  Rome  John  allows 
himself  one  date  every  Sunday,  Acta  Joh.,  6,  p.  154,  Bonnet. 
Andrew  sends  the  liberated  prisoners  of  the  Anthropophagi  under 
a  fig-tree,  which  supplies  them  with  sufficient  food,  p.  93,  Bonnet ; 
from  his  blood  there  spring  fruit-trees,  p.  108.  The  whole  part 
which  the  Anthropophagi  play  in  the  later  Acts  of  the  Apostles 
is  connected  with  the  vegetarian  tendency. 

As  regards  the  motive,  the  fact  must  not  be  lost  sight  of  that  the 
boundary  lines  fluctuate,  and  frequently  there  are  several  motives 
at  work,  as  a  rule  not  all  consciously.  A  clear  distinction  must  be 
drawn,  for  it  makes  a  difference  whether  vegetarianism  is  based 
on  the  doctrine  of  transmigration  (cf.  Zeller,  Gesch.  der  griech. 
Philosophic,  i.^  449  f^-,  806  ff.),  or  on  purely  dietetic  considerations ; 
whether  it  proceeds  from  the  repudiation  of  sexual  intercourse,  as, 
e.f.,  is  veiy  clearly  the  case  in  the  Katharoi  (Summa  fratris  Raineri, 
Martene  Thes.,  v.  p.  176l  :  comedere  carries  vel  ova  vel  caseum  etiam 
in  urgenti  necessitate  sit  peccatum  mortale,  et  hoc  ideo  quia  nascuntur  ex 
coitu;  cf.  the  Ebionitic  view  apud  Epiph.,  haer.,  xxx.  15),  or  from 
fear  of  the  dSwXoOvTov.  The  complete  abstinence  from  meat  upon 
religious  grounds  is  clearly  to  be  distinguished  from  the  phil- 
osophical and  rationalising  view  expressed,  e.g.,  in  the  proverbs  of 
Sixtus  :  i/x\l/v)^u}v  ^(pijcrt?  fiev  dSia^opov,  ctTro;^^  Se  XoyLKwrepov,  Origines, 
c.  Cels.,  viii.  30.  Frequently,  too,  the  original  motive  was  not 
understood :   thus,  Plutarch,   De  Lib.   Educ,  1 7,  shows  the  same 


NOTES  399 

spiritualising  method  of  interpreting  the  Pythagorean  rules  of  diet 
which  we  find  in  Barnabas,  10,  applied  to  the  Mosaic  ones.  There 
is  no  necessary  connection  between  abstinence  from  wine  and 
vegetarianism ;  the  former  exists  among  the  nomads  who  live  on 
flesh,  e.g.,  among  the  Arabs  of  the  pre-Islamic  period,  among  the 
Rechabites  and  the  related  Nazarites.  Wine  was  also  forbidden  to 
the  Jiamen  dial  is  at  Rome  (vide  Zockler,  Aekese,  ^,  i.  pp.  93,  101). 
Welzsacker  rightly  (Jahrb.  f.  deutsche  Theol.,  1876,  308  f.)  refuses 
to  deduce  either  vegetarianism  or  Essenism  from  fear  of  the 
iiSwkoOvTov  among  Roman  Christians,  and  assigns  their  origin  to  the 
Orphics.  In  that  case,  however,  it  is  not  easy  to  maintain  any 
longer  that  koivos  and  Ka6ap6<:  (Rom.  xiv.  14,  20)  point  with  certainty 
to  Jewish  origin  (ibid.,  26 1). 

6.  ON  THE  TERMINOLOGY  OF  MORALITY. 

In  what  follows  an  attempt  is  made  to  give  a  survey  of  the  terms 
employed  in  early  Christian  literature  so  far  as  they  bear  upon 
morality.  It  is  a  chapter  from  the  history  of  the  rise  of  the 
devotional  language  of  Christianity.  True,  this  is  not  an  entirely 
new  creation.  To  a  large  extent  it  was  fashioned  earlier  in  the 
works  of  Greek  moralists,  and  above  all  in  the  Greek  Bible  of  the 
O.T.  Still,  a  beginning  can  and  must  be  spoken  of  here,  and  the 
rapid  development  characteristic  of  commencements  can  be  clearly 
made  out.  The  first  step  is  taken  by  Paul,  at  once  the  Hebrew 
and  the  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles.  The  sayings  of  the  Lord  in  the 
Gospels  are,  like  the  O.T.,  antecedent.  In  both  cases  the  Jewish- 
Christian  method  of  expression  remains,  so  far  as  we  can  recognise 
it.  But  both  combine  also  to  give  definiteness  to  the  edification- 
speech  of  the  later  Gentile  Christianity.  The  secular  spirit  of 
gnostic  Christianity  comes  to  light  in  the  adoption  of  non-Biblical 
ideas  drawn  from  Greek  philosophy.  Thus  we  have  here  repeated 
in  a  single  case  what  we  have  shown  above  to  be  the  course  of 
general  development. 

Terms,  however,  are  more  than  mere  mirrors  of  thought  ;  they 
possess  effective  power.  The  judgment  is  trained  on  the  speech. 
Thus  this  collection  belongs  in  a  double  sense  to  our  task. 

I  say  expressly  that  it  is  only  to  be  an  attempt ;  no  effort  is 
made  to  secure  completeness.  Proof  passages  have  been  only 
occasionally  given,  mostly  from  the  Apostolical  Fathers.  So  far  as 
the  N.T.  is  concerned,  further  assistance  can  be  readily  had  from 


400  NOTES 

concordance  or  lexicon.  Selected  examples  reveal  the  quick 
growth  of  the  edification-speech  into  bombast,  especially  in  the 
case  of  1  Clem. 

For  moral  conduct  as  a  whole,  the  Christian  walk,  various  figura- 
tive descriptions  are  employed  :  a.vaa-Tpo(f)7],  aywyrj,  Tropua,  TroXiTeia 
(1  Clem.),  yStos  (1  Clem.  62,  1,  emperos;  otherwise  usually  =  means  of 
subsistence,  earthly  life)  with  the  appropriate  verbs  tpjv,  avacnpe.- 
tjicaOoLi,  Tr€ptTraT€LV,  TropevecrOai,  TroXiTeveadaL,  orot^^ctv. 

The  corresponding  moral  character  is  described  by  adjectives  or 
adverbs  like  dya^ds,  KaAos,  ocritos,  (re/xvws,  a/Ae/ATrrcos,  iva-)(y]fji6v(xi<5,  araK- 
TW9,  and  prepositional  phrases  such  as  Iv  dytdrr/rt,  ev  o-uxfipoa-vvr},  iv 
(ro(fiia,  iv  ocrLOTrjTL  KapSt'a?, — iv  dcreAyet'ais,  Kara  to.?  iTnOv/xia<;,  Kara 
aya.7rr]v. 

Other  figures  are  arpaTeveo-Oat  {cf.  SeaipTwp  evpeOrjvaL,  Ign.),  dOXrjrjs, 
dywv,  dycovt^ecr^at,  dcrKeiv. 

The  religious  relation  is  expressed  in  SovXeveiv,  Xarpeveiv  (for  the 
distinction,  vide  p.  202),  XeLTOvpyeiv  tw  ^cw,  apecrKeiv,  evapea-reLV  tw  OeQ, 
^ew  a-xoXd^cLV,  Ign.,  Pol.,  vii.  3. 

A  religious  significance  is  also  attached  to  the  comprehensive 
term  appearing  first  in  Acts,  1  Clem.,  and  especially  the  Pastoral 
Epistles,  eu(Te/3€ia  (evaefS-q';,  eva-e^etv)  ;  still  more  clearly  but  more 
seldom  in  Beoa-e/Seta,  6eo(Tej3rj<;,  Oeocrelielv — much  more  frequent  are 
acre/3eia,  a(Te^rj<;,  do-eySeiv.  eva-ifSeta  appears  beside,  and  to  some 
extent  takes  the  place  of  SiKaiocrvvr],  a  term  which  is  conceived  by 
Paul  in  a  purely  religious  sense  as  right  relation  to  God,  but  in  the 
later  Gentile  Christianity  always  tends  to  return  to  the  old  Jewish 
signification  of  right  conduct,  and  even  of  a  single  right  action  (see 
under). 

The  religious  notion  is  often  indicated  by  the  addition  of  Beov  or 
6e(o,  and  also  by  ev  Oe^o,  Kara  Oeov,  d^tws  tov  Oeov,  ets  tlixtjv  6eov. 
Ignatius  calls  the  Christian  OeoSpop.o's,  Phil.,  ii.  2  (the  same  term  is 
employed  by  him,  Pol.,  vii.  2  =  ^coTrpeo-^Scvriys,  Smyrn.,  xi.  2,  deputies 
of  the  churches),   and  coins  the  words   a$c66eo<;,   ^eoTrpeTn^s,    deo/xa- 

KapKTTO'i. 

The  special  Christian  sense  is  imparted  by  ■)^tcrTov  or  ;(ptcrTw, 
usually  iv  ^icttio,  Kara  ■^pLO'Tov,  iv  Kvpuo,  Kara  Kvpiov,  d^i'cos  tov  Kvpiov, 
Kara  to  KaOrJKov  tCH  ^icttw,  1  Clem.  iii.  4  ;  Kara  rrjv  aXyjOciav  tov  KVpLOV, 
Polyc,  Phil.,  V.  2.  The  Didache,  xi.  8,  uses  rpoTrot  KvpCov,  and  for  the 
opposite  yfiiaTifjiTTopo'i,  xii.  5  ;  Ignatius  has  already  Kara  ^LdTLavio-jjiov 
t,riv  (opp.  Kara  'Ioi;Sa(,cr/u,dv),  Magn.  x.  1,  Rom.  iii.  3,  Phil.  vi.  1,  and 
Kara  ^pLa-TopiaOtav  Trpdcra-eLv  tl,  Phil.  viii.  2.      The    relation  to  Christ 


NOTES  401 

is  especially  prominent  in  Paul  and  Ignatius^  while,  e.g.,  in  the 
Shepherd  of  Hernias  it  is  almost  entirely  absent.  Here  too  belong 
forms  like  Kara  to  euayycXiov,  d^tcos  tov  evayyeXiov  and  irvevfJiaTL,  Kara 
TTvevfjia ;  also  jxaOrp-r]^  elvai  and  fjLaOrjTevecrOaL  are  used  by  Ignatius 
^vith  an  ethical  colouring. 

Mention  must  also  be  made  of  the  thought  of  the  pattern  applied 
occasionally  to  God,  usually  to  Christ,  but  also  to  the  Fathers  of 
the  Old  Covenant,  the  Christian  teachers  like  the  Apostle,  the 
leaders  of  the  Christian  community,  and  even  the  communities 
themselves  :  iiTroSeiy/x-a,  vTroypaixfj.o's,  tuttos,  (.'xfo^j  ^nd  correspondingly 
lxifx.r)Trj<;  elvai,  yivecrOat,  fjnixelcrOai ;  Paul  exhorts  the  Phil.,  crvf^fXLfMrjTdt. 
/xov  ytVeo-^e,  iii.  17;  and  Polycarp  (Phil.  i.  l)  calls  the  martyrs  to. 
fxi/xyfjiaTa  TTys  aXrjOov?  aydTrr]<;  (  =  of  Christ). 


The  norm  of  Christian  practice  is  generally  to  OeXrjixa  tov  Oeov, 
seldomer  /SovXi],  f3ovXr)fjia,  /SovXyjai? ;   very  frequently  17  ivToXi]  and 
ai  ej/ToAat  tov  deov  and  tov  Kvpiov.     vd/tos,  as  denoting  the  O.T.  law, 
is  very  rarely  employed  for  the  requirements  of  Christian  morality ; 
6  vo'/xos  KaX  ol  ■!rpo(t>rJTaL,  which  usually  describes  the  compass  of  all 
divine  promises,  is  used  in  Matt.  vii.  1 2,  xxii.  40,  to  mean  the  sum  of 
God's  requirements.     But  from  the  time  of  Paul  on,  v6fxo<;  is  applied 
to  Christ's  commandment  of  love,  and  so  in  James  and  Barnabas  we 
find  the  Gospel  described  as  the  new  law.     Ignatius  applies  Xpto-To- 
vofjLos  as  a  title  of  honour  to  the  Church  in  Rome.     The  O.T.  terms 
vofXLfjia,  Trpoo-Tay/xaTa,  TrapayyeXfxaTa,  StKaiwyuaTa  Kvpiov  are  frequent  by 
the  time    of   1   Clement,  the    last-mentioned  being  found  also   in 
Luke,  Hebrews,  Barnabas.       Paul    has    irapayyeXia,  7rapa.So<ji<s,  also 
StttTao-cretv  with  yvwfjir]  and  Kavtov ;  8dyyu,aTa  is  used  to  describe  purely 
moral  commands  in  Acts  xvi.  4  ;  Ign.,  Magn.,  xiii.  1  ;  Barn.,  i.  6,  ix.  7, 
X.    1,   9;   Did.,  xi.  3.      John   uses  tov  Xdyov  fJiov  Trjpeiv,  and  we  find 
VTrrjKoov;  ovTas  toIs  dyioTrpeir(.cn  Xdyots   avTov   in    1    Clem.    xiii.    3   [cf. 
xiii.    1,  xlvi.   7).     to.  p-jfxaTa  tov  Oeov,  1    Clem.  x.  ],  and  to.  Xoyia  ttJ's 
TratSetas  tov  6eov,  1  Clem.  Ixii.  3,  refer  to  the  O.T.      A  church  consti- 
tution with  a  catechism  prefixed  is  entitled  SiSa^rj  Kvpiov  (8ta  tojv 
ifi'  d-n-Qo-ToXtjiv),  and  appeals  to  w?  e;)(eT€  kv  tuj  evayyeXlw,  XV.  3  f.,   ws 
KeAevcrev  6  KvpLo<s  ev  tw  cvayycXt'o),  viii.  2.       In  the  Pastoral  Epistles 
vyiatvoucra  StSacrKaXca  =  unspeculative,  practical  Christianity,  is  char- 
acteristic.    The  general  description  of  docti'ine  as  680'?,  Acts  ix.  2 
and  often,  which  was  taken  over  from  the  Rabbis,  is  peculiar.       Its 
figurative  meaning  is  preserved  clearly  in  the  "two  ways,"  Did.,  i.  1. 

26 


402  NOTES 

In  John  aXyjOeia  is  also  used  to  designate  the  norm  (cf.  Ign.,  Eph.,  vi. 
2  ;  Polyc,  Phil.,  v.  2). 

Other  expressions  are  Trotetv  to  OeXyj/xa,  TrXrjpovv  ivToXrjv,  Trjpeiv  ras 
€VToXa9,  <jivXdTT€LV  Tov  vofjiov,  TcXclv  vojxov,  VTTaKOveiv  rots  irpocrrayixacn, 
2  Clem.  ;  vTroTacraecrOai  ^ew,  Ign.  ;  Tret^ap^etv  tw  Adyw  t^s  StKatocrwr^s, 
Polyc. — and  correspondingly  irapaKoveiv,  7rapacj>po:  civ,  dOiTelv,  iyKora- 
XetVeiv,  AetiroTaKxeiv. 

The  Christian  ideal  is  to  aya96v,  to  KaXw?  ex^'''  *^^*-*  '''^  ^t'^o-tov  kol 
ocriov,  ocrtcus,  1  Clem. ;  more  religious  colouring  attaches  to  o-c/avos, 
(T€fxv6rr]<s,  1  Clem. J  Past.  ; — KaXov  Kai  Tepirvov  koL  TrpocrSeKTOv,  1  Clem, 
vii.  3  ;  TO,  eidpecTTa  koI  evTrpooSiKTa,  xxxv.  5.  The  originally  purely 
religious  notion  aytos  (ayiwcruvr;),  "^"^  consecrated/'  soon  assumes,  if  it 
does  not  actually  to  some  extent  bring  with  it  from  the  O.T.,  an 
ethical  colouring;  so  especially  in  dyiaor/Ao?,  rjyLaarixevo<s,  dyio^dpos,  Ign. ; 
still  stronger  ethical  colouring  attaches  in  the  speech  of  primitive 
Christianity  to  the  notion  dyvds,  dyveta,  dyvevctv,  dyvi^eiv,  dfidayvos. 

The  occurrence  of  the  notion  of  dpeTj]  in  the  ancient  period  is 
remarkably  rare,  only  in  Phil.  iv.  8  (of  God's  mighty  deeds,  1  Pet. 
ii.  9 ;  2  Pet.  i.  3) ;  then  2  Pet.  i.  5,  2  Clem.  x.  1,  and  Hermas ; 
ivdp€TO<s  pio?,  1  Clem.  Ixii.  1,  yvwfjirj,  Ign.,  Philad.,  i.  2  ;  Travdpero?  koL 
(refSdcT/JLLO';  TroXtTcia,  1  Clem.  ii.  8,  TravdpeTos  kol  I3e/3dia  ttlo-tl's,  1 
Clem.  i.  2.  In  the  same  way  there  is  a  striking  absence  of  the 
special  ethical  terminology  of  Greek  philosophy,  e.g.,  eiSaifjiovLa ; 
vide  A.  Carr,  "The  Use  of  Pagan  Ethical  Terms  in  the  N.T., 
Expos.,  1899,  pp-  443-452.  ^6os  is  found  only  in  1  Cor.  xv.  33  in 
the  quotation  from  Menander ;  there  are  also  to  [xeyaXoTrpeirh  t^s 
(fiiXo^evia<s  r]6o<i,  1  Clem.  i.  2  ;  to  d^iaydTrrjrov  Trj<;  dyveias  rjOos,  1  Clem, 
xxi.  7  ;  cf.  Kara  ofxoTJOetav  Oiov,  Ign.,  Magn.,  vi.  2  ;  Pol.,  i.  3. — koXo- 
Kdya$La,  Ign.  Eph.,  xiv.  1. 


To  describe  the  goal  we  find  employed  TeXctoTT^s,  Te'Xeios  ehai,  dprio?, 
dir — ,  i^ — ,  KaT — rjpTKTjxivo^  ctvat,  oXoKXrjpos,  oXoreXt^s  and  others. 

This  goal  is  reached  on  the  one  hand  by  the  divine  TratSeta 
(Hebr.,  1  Clem.),  and  on  the  other  by  human  (^d/3os  (no  longer 
existent  for  Christians  in  the  purely  religious  sense,  Rom.  viii.  15, 

1  John  iv.  18,  but  awakened  and  strengthened  in  the  moral  sense, 

2  Cor.  vii.  1 1  and  Phil.  ii.  1 2  and  often) ;  cf.  vraiSeia  tov  (f>6j3ov  tov 
6€ov,  1  Clem.  xxi.  6  ;  Polyc,  Phil.,  iv.  2.  There  are  numerous  expres- 
sions for  zeal  ;  ■n-poOvfio'S,  eTOLfios  elvac,  Trpodvfiia,  ^rjXos  (^T/XwTat  to5 
dya^oD,    1    Pet.    iii.    13  ;    Trept  to  KaXov,   Polyc,   Phil.,   vi.    3),   ctttovSt; 


NOTES  403 

(^cnrevSeLv),  ir66o<;  dKopecrros  cis  dya^oTroiiai/ ;  cktcvt^s,  if  cKTcvet'a,  yu,eTa 
Trdcrrj'i  cKTevetas.  It  also  finds  expression  in  the  familiar  figure  of 
Si<aKeiv  (SiKaio(rvv7]V,  aperi^v,  aya.Trrjv,  <^tXo^eviav,  elp-qvrjv,  to  ayaOov). 
The  devotion  of  the  whole  man  is  described  by  ef  oAr;s  ttJs  KapSta?, 
c^  0A.17S  T^s  io-;^'os,  etc. 

For  the  reverse  we  have  dpyos  kcu  irapcLiifvo'i  etvat,  1  Clem,  xxxiv. 
4  ;  avOpwiros  fevos,  Jas.  ii.  20 ;  then  also  Sti/ruxta  (Jas.,  Hermas),  and 
StTrAo/capSi'a,  Barn.  xx.  1  ;  Stcrrd^civ,  8i(rTay^os  ;  — irepo — yvu)fX(Dv,  — 
kAivi^s,  1  Clem.,  — So^civ,  — StSacrKaXcu/,  iv  aXXoTpta  yvw/xr],  Ign.,  are 
more  of  the  nature  of  dogmatic  terms.  On  the  other  hand,  there 
come  in  here  expressions  like  dXAorptos  koI  fevos  tois  eKAcKTots  tov 
Oeov,  1  Clem.  i.  1  ;  for  a  Christianity  of  name  only  :  SoAw  -rrovrjpQ  to 
ovofxa  7rcpi(f>ep€tv,  Ign.,  Eph.,  vii.  1,  to  ovo/xa  cf^opelv,  T-qv  Se  SvvafXLV 
fXT)  <f}opeLv  avTov,  Herm.,  S.  IX.  xiii.  2 ;  and  for  secularisation, 
irepLTvouZcrdat  tov  alwva.  tovtov,  yavpiav  iv  tw  ttAoutw,  ifX7re(jivp/X€V0<i 
Trpay/xaretats,  etc.,  in  Hermas. 

James  and  Hermas  retain  [xeTavoeLv,  /Aeravota,  to  describe  the 
demand  made  of  such  Christians.  In  O.T.  and  Gospels  /jLerdvota 
always  refers  to  Israel's  return  to  her  own  ideal,  but  in  Paul  and 
others  is  used  only  of  the  transition  from  paganism  to  Christianity. 
Cf.  dvavt]cji€LV,  iinaTpecfietv,  dvaKaXuaOai  to.  TreirXavrjfJiiva,  Polyc. 

In  the  earlier  period  it  is  rather  the  maintenance  of  tlie  Christian 
condition  that  is  spoken  of:  (m/Ketv  iv,  Kparetv,  /caT6;^€tv  rots  irapa- 
Soarea,  Paul ;  /xeveiv,  Joh.,  Barn.,  ii.  3. 

Great  stress  is  laid,  especially  in  the  later  pei'iod,  on  the  practical 
proof  of  Christianity.  Frequent  expressions  are  Trotetr  to  OeX-q/xa, 
TOV  vofJLOv,  TTjv  ivToXr]v,  Tr]v  dXrj6eLav,  ttjv  8LKaL0(rvvr]v,  to,  dya^d,  to. 
dpea-Ta,  and  so  on ;    irpdcra-eiv   is  used  in  Ignatius  and  eTrtTeAetv    in 

2  Cor.  vii.  1  and  1  Clem,  cpya  is  often  employed  (with  another 
meaning  than  that  which  it  has  with  Paul) :  'ipya  dyaOd,  1  Clem. 
xxxiv.  4,  xxxviii.  2  ;  epya  KaTepyd^ecrOaL,  1  Clem,  xxxii.  4 ;  TeXeiovv 
TO  cpyov  TOV  6eov,  John  ;  Te'Aetov  epyov,  Ign.  ;  Trpa^is  dya^T^,  1  Clem. 
XXX.  7.  The  range  of  the  word  dyadoTroielv  is  charactei'istic  =  to 
do  good,  Luke  vi.  33,  35  ;  Acts  xiv.  17  D.  ;  =  to  do  good,  Mark  iii.  4 
(var.  lect.,  dyadov  ttol€iv),  Luke  vi.  9  ;  1  Pet.  ii.  15,  20,  iii.  6,  17  ; 
1    John  xi.  ;    2    Clem.    x.    2  ;    dyaOoiroLO^,    1    Pet.    ii.    14;   dyaOo-rroda, 

3  Pet.  iv.  19  ;  1  Clem.  ii.  2,  7,  xxxiii.  1,  xxxiv.  2  ;  also  dya^ovpyeiv. 
Acts  xiv.  17  tt  B.,  dya^ocpyetv,  1  Tim.  vi.  18,  also  KaXoiroidv,  2  Thess. 
iii.  13  ; — along  with  €U7rotetv  =  to  do  good,  and  eviroda,  Hebr.  xiii.  16, 
Ign.  Pol.,  vii.  3,  we  have  einrpdao-eLv,  Ign.,  and  evirpayeiv,  2  Clem, 
xvii.  7. 


404       '  NOTES 

StKaiocrvvri  is  usually  employed  as  right  conduct  =  dya^os  civai, 
Barn.  iv.  12;  hence  StKaiocrvvat  =  good  deeds,  2  Clem.  vi.  9  =  epya 
8t/caiocrw?;s,  Barn.  i.  6,  epyov  SiKaLocrvvr]^  ipyd^ecrOai,  ]  Clem,  xxxiii.  8  ; 
TTOictv,  Trpacrcrcti/,  irXrjpovv,  Stw/cctv,  StSacr/cetv  SiKaLocrvvrjv,  ypd(f>eLV  irepl 
StKaioo-w779,  Polyc,  Phil.,  iii.  1  ;  oSos  St/caiotrwr/?.  So  in  opposition 
to  Paul,  whose  formulas  are  still  to  some  extent  retained,  there  are 
now  used  I'pyots  or  e|  cpycov  SiKaiovcrOai,  1  Clem.  xxx.  3,  Jas.  ii.  24. 
In  this  sense  we  must  understand  the  short  description  of  the 
Christian  as  6  St'/cato?,  Barn.  x.  11,  dvrjp  StKatos,  Herm.  V.  i.  18  ;  the 
same  term  is  applied  to  the  Fathers  and  the  Apostles,  1  Clem.  The 
word  SiKaLOTrpayM,  1  Clem,  xxxii.  3  (^vide  p.  207),  is  formed. 

In  this  connection  the  picture  of  the  bringing  forth  of  fruit  is  to 
be  noted.  The  figure  is  based  on  Jesus'  sayings,  recorded  in 
Matt.  vii.  l6  ff.,  xii.  33,  xiii.  23,  xxi.  19-  Qf.  the  Baptist's  address, 
iii.  8  ff.  Paul  speaks  in  the  same  way  of  Kapiros  tov  Tri/eujuaros, 
Gal.  V.  22  ;  cf.  Rom.  vi.  21  f  ;  Kap-iros  Si/catocrwTj?,  Phil.  i.  11  (Hebr.. 
xii.  11,  Jas.  iii.  18);  cf.  Phil.  iv.  17;  KapTr6<s  tov  ^wto?,  Eph.  v.  9, 
Kapiros  elprjvLKO's  Slk.,  Hebr.  xii.  11 — frequent  in  John,  iv.  36,  xii.  24, 
XV.  2  f,  8,  l6  ;  /capTTo?  ^avarr/^opos,  Ign.  Trail.,  xi.  1  ;  — jxea-rr]  .... 
KapTTiov  dyaOiov,  Jas.  iii.  17,  cf  II  f .  ;  —  Kap7ro0opetv  tw  Oe^,  Rom.  vii.  4  ; 
iv  Travrl  ^py(j)  dyaOto,  Col.  i.  10,  c/.  6  ;  ttiVtis  ....  KapTroc^opti,  Polyc. 
Phil.,  i.  2  ;  the  Chi-istians  ascend  from  baptism,  /cap7ro<^opoBvT€s  iv  ttj 
KapSia,  Barn.  xi.  11;  in  the  same  way  Kap7ro<^opos,  Hippolytus, 
Refut.,  ix.  12,  appears  to  be  a  real  Christian  name  in  the  sense  in 
which  H.  Achelis,  Zeitschr.  f  neutestl.  Wissenschaft,  i.  89,  rightly 
defines  it  (it  is  also  to  be  found  in  pre-Christian  period).  eyKapivos 
Kol  TcXet'tt  dvaX.va-i<i  (death),  1  Clem.  xliv.  5,  eyKapTros  koX  reXeta 
jjiviia,  Ivi.  1  ; — aKapiros,  Matt.  xiii.  22,  Mark  iv.  19  (voCs,  1  Cor. 
xiv.  14); — aKapira  epya  tov  (tkotovs,  Eph.  v.  1 1  ;  tW  fir]  wctlv  aKapiroi, 
Tit.  iii.  14;  8ev8pa  ^divoiroipivd  aKapTra  =  heretics,  Jude  12;  2  Pet. 
i.  8. 

Decisive  importance  is  laid  also  on  the  intention  or  mental 
attitude  :  (fipovelv  (<^povr/yu,a)  very  frequently  in  Paul ;— /xeVpta  koI 
(TCfiva.  voelv,  1  Clem.  i.  3  ; — ttjv  eVvoiav  XptoToi)  oTrXtVacr^at,  1  Pet. 
iv.  1  ;  Sidvoia  KaOapd,  eiAiKptvT^s,  dirXi],  dTreptaTraaTO^ ;  Kapoca  KaOapd, 
dirX-)],  dfxipi<TTo<;,  dX-qOivrj ; — [xetTTol  ocrt'as  ^ovXrjs,  1  Clem.  ii.  3  ; — 
oa-LOTT]?  if/vxy]'i,  xxix.  1,  AcapSta?,  xxxii.  4.  Here  we  must  include  the 
frequent  emphasising  of  the  a-vv€i8y]o-i<;,  fifteen  times  in  Paul ;  o-uvei- 
SrjCTL^  dyaOrj,  KaXrj,  Ka$apd,  d-n-pocrKOTros,  a/xw/xos  Kat  ae/xvr]  xat  ayvr},  1 
Clem.  i.  3  ;  also  iv  .    .   .   .   o-vvetB^a-et  TrcptTraretv. 


NOTES  405 

Among  the  individual  virtues  there  is  a  special  demand  for 
TaTretvo<f)po(TVX'r]  ( — c^/DOveiv),  €7rt€t/ceia,  irpavTrj'i  (TrpavTrddeLa,  1  Tim.  vi. 
11,  Ign.),  /j.aKpo6vfXLa,  cTMcfipocrvvy  (crwc^poi'etv),  vyfjieiv.  to  dKLi'-qrov  kol 
TO  aopyrjTov,  Ign.,  Philad.,  i.  2.  Here  we  must  mention  dyveta  and 
iyKpareta,  so  far  as  they  bear  upon  iTTLOv/xia,  and,  in  the  second  place, 
on  outward  behaviour ;  etStos,  very  frequent  in  Greek  moralists,  is 
used  only  1  Tim.  ii.  9- 

There  is  a  remarkable  abundance  of  negative  expressions.  On 
the  one  hand,  we  have  aTre)(e(r6ai,  aTrort^eo-^ai,  ■n-po(xi)(^Lv  airo  .  .  .  ., 
diroTdcra-ea-OaL  tw  ySt'cu,  Ign.,  Philad.,  xi.  1  ;  aTroAeiTrctv  rrjv  fxaraiOTrovLav, 
1  Clem.  ix.  1,  cf.  xxviii.  1,  Polyc.  ;  diropptimiv  irdo-av  dSiKtW,  1  Clem. 
XXXV.  5  ;  ayaKOTTTecrOaL  oltto  tC)v  lin6vp.nsiv  iv  rw  koo^/xw,  ^^aAtvaytoyetv 
kavTov  d-rro  Travros  KaKov,  Polyc,  Phil.,  v.  .3,  p-aKpav  etvat  /racrr^s  (f>i\ap- 
yvpias,  ^^.  1  ;  (fievyetv.  On  the  other  hand,  there  are  adjectives  with 
a  privativum,  e.g.,  dSiaKpiTo^,  aKaKo?,  dKipato<;,  dKardyvwa-TO^,  d/x-e/xTrros, 
dlx€TafxiXy]TOS,  dfjiLavTO<;,  dpnaixo'i,  dv^yKXrjTO^,  dveTrLkrjp.TrTO<;,  dvocrtos, 
vLTrpoa-KOTro?,  dTrrato-Tos,  dcr7riA.os,  d^9apTo<;.  These  terins,  to  be 
understood  in  Paul  as  the  antithesis  of  heathenism,  come  later  to 
be  the  expression  of  a  negative  moral  sentiment ;  they  increase  and 
reach  their  climax  in  the  gnostic  writings  (tide  p.  26 1).  In  these 
we  also  meet  with  drapa^ia,  dirddeLa,  and  other  terms  of  Greek 
philosophy  Avhich  are  alien  to  early  Christianity  (vide  p.  258). 

Sin  is  usually  called  d/Aaprta  and  the  single  act  dfxdpTrjpia,  -n-apdir- 
Tto/xa,  TrXrjjXfjiiKf.ta,  dvofxia,  doiKia  and  to.  droTra.  The  sinner  is  o 
d/xa/DTwXds,  6  (fyavXo^,  6  7rovr/po?.  dp-apTta  as  a  rule  =  guilt,  hence  of 
various  degrees:  dp^aprta  icrrLv,  koL  p,€ydX.rj,  "sin  and  a  great  sin," 
Herm.  V.  i.  i.  8  ;  dp^aprta  tt/jos  Odvarov  and  ov  Trpos  Odvarov,  1  John 
V.  1 6  f.  ;  there  is  an  aKwv  dp-aprdvea',  1  Clem.  ii.  3  =  dyj'owv  Troteiv, 
1  Tim.  i.  13.  Other  expressions  are  employed  :  dp-apria^  dvaypd<f)eiv, 
iXey^eiv,  e^o/xoXoyeicr^at,  dcjuevai,  e^aXet<^6iv,  IdaOaL  The  notion  of 
sin  attaches  to  dvdpiDTros,  (rdp$  (Paul),  Kocrp^os  (John),  to  atwv  oSros  or 
Tov  Kocrp-ov  TovTov,  dvop,o<s  Ktttpos  (Barnabas).  Hence  ^rjv  Kara  dvOpw- 
TTOVS,  (rapKLKal  kol  (Tw/xaTt/cai  iiriOvp-Lat,  Did.  i.  4,  KOcrp.ov  lTn6vp.uv, 
Ign.,  Rom.  vii.  1,  and  conversely,  Koo-p-ov  vqa-rivcw  (vide  p.  268).  Evil 
desire  is  very  fi-equently  iirtOvpiLa,  seldomer  rjBov-q,  both  as  a  rule  in 
the  plural  (with  an  essentially  different  meaning  from  that  in  the 
ethical  philosophers).  Here,  too,  regard  is  had  to  the  intention  : 
sins  of  thought  are  described  in  fiovXeveaOai  7rovi]pd,  Herm.  V.  I.  i.  8, 
c/^  i.  2  ;  rj  l3ov\r]  dva^atvet  etti  ttjv  KapBiav,  SiayneVci  iv  rais  KapSiai?, 
S.   IX.  xxviii.  4  f.     The  greatest  sin  is  disobedience  towards  God 


406  NOTES 

(vide  supra)  :   avTiTarTea-OaL  rw   $^\r)fxaTi   avrov,  1  Clem.,  evavTios   eivat 
TTJ  yvw/xj/  Tov  Oeov,  Ign.,  dTr€L$elv  KVpiw,  Polyc. 

We  cannot  find  room  here  to  go  into  the  individual  virtues  and 
vices,  good  and  evil  works. 

We  content  oui'selves  with  calling  attention  to  the  significance 
which  is  attached  to  ayaTrr],  ^tA.aSeX^ia,  <fitXo$€via,  and,  in  general,  to 
duties  owed  to  the  community  :  t,rjTetv  to  Koivwc^cXe's,  1  Clem,  xlviii. 
6  ;  (Tvvt,r]T€iv  Trepl  tov  kolvj}  o-uyit^epovTos,  Barn.  iv.  10.  As  the  object 
of  this  sentiment  all  men  are  thought  of,  but  specially  the  Christians  : 
ipyat^ixijjieOa  to  ayaOov  Trpos  Travras,  yaaXio-ra  8e  Trpos  otKciovs  Trj<i  Trt'crTCws, 
Gal.  vi.  10,  eis  aXX.rjX.ovi  kol  eis  Travras,  1  Thess.  v.  15  ;  for  the 
narrowing  of  the  idea  in  John,  vide  p.  229-  The  notion  dScAc^oTTys 
comes  into  Christianity,  1  Pet.  ii.  17,  v.  9 ;  1  Clem.  ii.  4.  (In  4 
Mace.  ix.  23,  x.  8,  it  describes  brotherhood  in  the  bodily  sense,  in 
1  Mace.  xii.  10,  17,  in  the  political  national  sense  ;  later,  it  narrows 
down  to  the  brotherhood  of  the  cloister,  and  is  employed  as  an 
honorary  designation  for  spiritual  dignitaries) ;  then  iKKX-qcrLa 
appears,  Did.,  Herm.  (in  the  earlier  period  usually  of  the  single 
congregation,  even  the  house-church,  and  only  occasionally  of  the 
ideal  church) ;  r]  KaOoXtKr]  iKKX-qa-ia,  Ign.,  Smyr.,  viii.  2.  To  this 
correspond  the  duties  of  Ta  avTa  (ftpovelv,  bfji.6<f)pov€s  elvat,  1  Pet.  iii. 
8,  elprjvevciv  in  opposition  to  e'pts,  (rrafrts,  St^^ocrracrta,  aKaracTTacr/a, 
TToXeftoL  KOL  fid)(aL,  Jas.  iv.  1. 

The  only  other  point  is  to  note  especially  the  stress  laid  upon 
the  requirement  p-rj  KaKov  olvtI  KaKov  ciTroSt'Sovat :  1  Thess.  v.  1 5  ;  1 
Pet.  ii.  23,  iii.  9 ;   Polyc,  ad  Phil.,  ii.  2  ;  Act.  Thorn.  55,  p.  42. 


Instead  of  going  into  detail,  let  us  take  a  short  glance  at  the 
nature  of  moral  instruction. 

It  had  two  roots — one  in  the  Greek  Orphic  societies,  the  other  in 
the  Jewish  O.T.  The  former  had  developed  an  essentially  negative 
form,  the  catalogue  of  vices  ;  the  latter  possessed,  along  with  the 
negations  of  the  decalogue,  rich  and  positive  treasures  in  the  pro- 
verb literature. 

Among  the  Orphics  ethical  instruction  had  an  eschatological  form, 
or  it  was  a  presentment  of  Hades.  The  future  recompense  of 
wickedness  is  pictured  in  single  types.  In  the  Nc/oita  of  the 
Odyssey,  Polygnotus  introduced  into  the  Lesche  of  the  Knidii  at 
Delphi  two  types  of  transgressors — one  who  had  sinned  against  his 


NOTES  407 

father  and  is  now  strangled  by  him  in  the  mire  of  Acheron,  and  a 
temple  profaner  who  is  tortured  by  a  woman  poisoner^  Pausan.,  X. 
xxviii.  1  f.  dcreySeta,  represented  in  the  Updo-uAos  and .  the  cTri'opKos, 
and  disrespect  for  parents  are  the  ground  types,  from  which  in  the 
course  of  time  a  rich  catalogue  of  vices  developed.  First  of  all 
there  came  in  injuiy  done  to  the  stranger,  then  murder,  adultery, 
greed,  etc.  With  the  oldest  Christian  form  of  these  katabaseis  we 
have  only  lately  become  acquainted  in  the  apocalypse  of  Peter,  with 
which  a  rich  literature  is  connected,  including  the  Acts  of  Thomas, 
55-58,  pp.  I7l  ff..  Bonnet,  the  Apocalypse  of  Paul,  the  Theotokos 
Apocalypse,  and  various  others  down  to  Dante's  Inferno ;  cf.  A. 
Dieterich,  Ne^vta,  l63  ff.,  with  a  table  affixed  embracing  the 
Christian  passages  and  also  my  review  in  the  Preuss.  Jahrbiichern, 
77,  189-i,  375  ff.  As  a  characteristic  example  of  a  heathen  catalogue 
of  vices,  I  adduce  Lysis  the  Pythag.,  apud  lamblichus,  de  vita  Pythag., 
xvii.  18,  p.  57,  Nauck  :  out  of  a/cpacrca  there  spring  aOeafxot  ya/Aot 
KOL  (jiOopal  Kol  /xeOai  Kal  (at)  irapa  <f)vcriv  dSovai  koL  a(f)oSpaL  Tiv6S  errt- 
Ovfuai  j  out  ot  TrAcove^t'a  there  arise  apirayai,  XaaTciaL,  TrarpOKTOvtaL, 
lepoanjXiaL,  (f)ap/xaK€LaL  koL  ocra  tovtwv  dSeAc^d. 

In  the  case  of  the  Jewish  instruction  we  must  start  from  Pro- 
verbs, Jesus  Sirach,  and,  above  all,  the  Testaments  of  the  Twelve 
Patriarchs,  where  in  the  twelve  sons  of  Jacob  the  individual  virtues 
and  vices  in  their  causes,  their  occurrences,  and  their  consequences 
are  set  forth.  A  typical  instance  is  the  Jewish  proselyte-catechism. 
It  is  incorporated  in  Did.  1-6  and  Barn.  18-20,  and  is  used  also  in 
Hermas,  Mand.  1-3.  In  the  figure  of  the  Two  Ways,  found  also 
among  the  Orphics,  this  catechism  sets  forth  righteousness  and 
unrighteousness — the  former  in  detail,  chap,  i.-iv.,  the  latter  briefly 
in  a  catalogue  of  vices,  chap.  v.  ;  lide  Harnack's  small  edition  of 
the  Doctrine  of  the  Apostles  and  the  edition  of  the  Didache  by 
Rendel  Harris,  who  connects  the  catalogue  of  vices  here  with  the 
Jewish  Viduis,  the  (later,  occasionally  alphabetically  arranged) 
confessions  of  the  Synagogue.  Special  attention  is  due  to  the 
enumeration  of  sins  of  omission  in  the  anonymous  Jewish  Apo- 
calypse, Steindorff,  Texte  und  Unters,  Neue  Folge,  II.  iii.  152. 
This  is  related  to  the  confessions,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  is  strongly 
reminiscent  of  Matt.  xxv.  4 1  ff.  For  further  examjiles  of  catalogues 
of  vices,  vide  Sap.  Sal.,  xiv.  22  ff.  ;  Rom.  i.  28  ff.,  xiii.  13  ;  1  Coi*.  v. 
10  f ,  vi.  9  f  ;  2  Cor.  xii.  20  f  ;  Gal.  v.  19  ff-  ;  Col.  iii.  5  ff.  ;  Eph.  iv. 
31,  V.  3  ff.  ;  1  Tim.  i.  9  f  ;  2  Tim.  iii.  2  ff.— Test.,  XII.  patr.  Reuben, 
3,    Levi  17;    Enoch  Slav.,  x.  4   f  ;  Baruch   Gr.-slav.,  4,  8,  13; — 


408 


NOTES 


1  Clem.  XXXV.  5  ;  Polyc,  Phil.,  il.  2  ;  Act.  Joh.  35  f.,  p.  l68,  Bonnet ; 
Clem.,  Hom.,  i.  18,  xi.  27;  Clem.,  Recogn.,  iv.  36.  It  is  worth 
noting  that  these  very  catalogues  of  vices  were  afterwards  employed 
for  catechetical  instruction,  e.g.,  Gal.  v.  19-21,  in  Charles  the  Great's 
Gr.  Admonitio  Genei*alis,  a.d.  789,  chap.  82,  Monumenta  Germanise, 
Leges,  vol.  ii.  p.  6l. 

In  the  case  of  Paul  as  of  Lysis,  the  foundation  is  laid  in  the  two 
categories  of  iropvda  and  TrAcove^ta,  1  Thess.  iv.  3  ff.  [where  it  is 
false  to  take  irpayixa,  v.  6,  as  a  euphemism  for  adultery].  The 
following  out  in  detail  is  very  fluctuating,  as  the  subjoined  table  of 
the  leading  passages  shows. 


I  Cor.  v.  1  Of    2Cor.  xii.  20. 

TTOpvoL  (2)  aKaOapcria 

TTopveia 


iXyi 


TrXeoveKTai 

apTrayes 

eiSwAoAarpai 


Aotowpos 


lx€6vcro<i 

(apira^) 


(1)  Ipts 
t,rjXo^ 

6vfJiOl 

ipiOeiai 

KaraXaAiat 

xl/iOvpto-jJioi 

(fivcTLwaeLS 

aKaracTTacnai 


Gal.  V.  19. 

TTOpVCLa 

OLKaOapcTLa 
dcreXyeLa 


elduiXoXarpeia 

(fjapfxaKeta 

exOpai- 

€pL<S 

^rjXo? 

Ovfxoi 

ipcOsiai 

SL^ocrTCicrLaL 

aip£cret5 

cfiOovoi 

<fi6vOL 
KSijXOl 


Rom.  i.  29.  Col.  iii.  5. 

V.  24  f.  TTopveta 

aKadapcria  aKaOapcrla 

V.    26    f.    unnatural  Tra^os 

vice.  (.TnOvp-La.  kolkt] 

aSt-Kta,  irovrjpia  7rX€0ve^i'a  = 
TrAeovcfia,  KaKia 

elBuiXoXarpeia 

<j>66vo<s,  (ji6vo<s 

epi'S,  SdAos 

KaKOTjOeta.  opyr] 

if/iOvpio-TaL,  KaraXaXoL  OvfJ.6^ 

^eoo-ruyeis,  v(3picrTaL  KaKia 

VTrepij(f>avoi,,  aXdt,ov€<s  fSXaa-cjjrjfiLa 

i(jievpeTaL  /ca/cwv  ato^i^poAoyta 

yovevcriv  aTrci^cts  (^evSos 

dcrvveTOL,  aavvOeroL 

aaTopyoi  [acTTrovSot] 

dveXer]fji.ov€? 


It  deserves  notice  that  -n-opvua  with  derivatives  occurs  about 
eighteen  times  in  Paul,  f^otx^ia  only  five  times,  two  of  these  being 
in  quotations  from  the  decalogue. 

To  the  catalogues  of  vices  there  are  corresponding  lists  of  virtues, 
e.g.,  Gal.  V.  22  ff.  ;  1  Clem.  Ixii.  2,  64 ;  usually  as  unarranged  as  the 
vices.  We  possess  examples  in  Hermas,  V.  in.  viii.  3-7  ;  M.  VI.  ii. 
3  ;  S.  IX.  XV.  2  ;  in  the  first  of  these  there  are  seven  enumerated  : 
TTiVrts,  iyKpdreia,  aTrAoxT^?,  aKaKta,  a-^fxvoT'q';,  iTna-Ttj/xr],  dydiry],  each 
coming  from  the  one  preceding  it,  like  the  daughter  from  the 
mother  {iTna-Trnx-q  in  v.  5  is  wrongly  put  in  between  ctTrAoTT/s  and 
aKaKta,  which  are  always  joined,  cf.  V.  iii.  ix.    1  ;  M.  ii.  1  ;  for  the 


NOTES  409 

arrangement  in  v.  7  we  have  the  evidence  of  analogy  in  crweo-ts, 
S.  ix.  In  the  second  passage  only  four  main  virtues  are  named, 
SLKaLoa-vvrj,  ayv^Ca,  arefivoTr]^,  avrapKCia  (cf.  S.  V.  ii.  9)  5  to  these  are 
to  be  added  the  practical  proofs  :  ttSv  epyov  StVatov,  Tracra  ap^rrj.  In 
the  third  passage  the  first  has  been  extended  to  an  enumeration  of 
twelve,  classified  as  four  stronger :  Trib-rt?,  iyKpareta,  8wa/x,ts,  /xaKpo- 
Ovfjiia,  and  eight  weaker :  airXoT-r]';,  d/ca/ct'a,  dyveta,  lAapoTTjs,  aXriOiia, 
crwccrts,  6/xovoia,  ayaiTyj  (crw€o-ts  =  iTnaTrj/xr] ;  IkapoTrj'i  to  be  specially 
noted  ! ;  8iVa/iis  [for  which  Lat.  Palat.  reads  patientia  =  virofjiovr],  cf. 
O.  von  Gebhardt,  Passio  S.  Theclae,  p.  xcvi.],  probably  the  capability 
which  results  from  tt/o-ti?  to  fulfil  God's  will). 

All  these  enumerations  are  similarly  unarranged  and  changeable. 
A  comparison  of  the  two  recensions  in  Did.  1-6  and  Barn.  18-20 
will  show  this. 

The  Pauline  form  of  the  table  of  domestic  duties  is  unique.  Col. 
Hi.  12-iv.  2 ;  it  is  imitated  in  Eph.  v.  15-vi.  18  ;  later  on  this  kind 
of  ethical  and  detailed  instruction  was  transferred  to  the  sermons 
and  exhortations  designed  for  special  groups  in  the  Church,  as  they 
are  indicated  in  1  Clem.  i.  3  ;  Tit.  ii.  2-10  ;  1  Tim.  ii.  8-15,  v.  1  £, 
vi.  1  f ,  and  in  the  pseudo-Clem.  Epistles,  de  virgmitate,  ii.  4,  are 
witnessed  to  for  the  third  century ;  vide  H.  Achelis,  Zeitschr.  f. 
N.  Tliche.  Wissenschaft,  i.,  1900,  96. 


There  is  a  wonderful  wealth  of  forms  of  moral  instruction  and 
expression.  From  this,  too,  it  is  possible  to  infer  the  richness  of 
the  moral  power  which  the  Gospel  bestowed  on  the  primitive 
Christian  communities. 


INDEX  OF  PASSAGES  REFERRED  TO  OR 
DISCUSSED 

Note  6  is  not  included 


Gen.       ii. 

24 

183 

Psalms — continued. 

iii. 

17  ff. 

93 

xxix.  1 1 

394 

vi. 

269 

xxxiv.  13-17 

183 

vi. 

2  f . 

183 

Ii.  19 

289 

ix. 

3 

396 

cxix.  27 

140 

ix. 

4 

393 

Prov.     iii.  34 

193 

xix. 

269 

xviii.  17 

237 

XXXV. 

22 

387 

xxiv.  21 

182 

xlix. 

4 

387 

Isaiah    xi.  5 

194 

KxoD.    xii. 

1] 

183 

xliii.  24 

54 

xix. 

10  1 
12  f 

183 

Hi.  7 

194 

XX. 

liii. 

185 

xxviii. 

39,42 

394 

lix.  17 

194 

xxxii. 

32 

205 

Ixv.  4 

394 

xxxix. 

28 

394 

Ixvi.  3,  17 

394 

Lev.    xvii. 

11,  14 

393 

Jer.   xviii.  7-10 

391 

xviii. 

8 

388  f. 

xxviii.  l6  f. 

390 

XX. 

11 

388 

EzEK.     iii.  17-21 

391 

Num.       v. 

11  ff. 

390 

xxii.  10  f. 

388  f. 

vi. 

393 

xxxiii.  25 

394 

vi. 

13  f. 

394 

xliv.  17 

394 

xi. 

16  f. 

157 

Daniel  iv.  21  ff. 

391 

Deut.   xii. 

15 

396 

HosEA    vi.  6 

140 

xii. 

16 

393 

Joel        ii.  12  ff. 

391 

xxiii. 

1 

388 

Jonah  iii.,  iv. 

391 

xxvii. 

20 

388 

MiCAH    vi.  8 

140 

xxxii. 

15 

214 

Zech.      ix.  7 

394 

JuDG.  xiii. 

4,7,14 

393 

1  Sam.  xiv. 

32  f. 

394 

1  MACc.ix.  54 

390 

2  Sam.  xvi. 

21 

387 

2MACc.iii.  23  ff. 

391 

1  Kings  ii 

13  ff. 

388  f. 

xii.  42  ff. 

20 

Job     xxxi 

140 

Sirach  xii.  1 

302 

Psalms     i. 

2 

140 

4  Ezra    v.  13 

397 

XV 

140 

vi.  21 

397 

411 


412 


INDEX  OF  PASSAGES 


4  Ezra — continued 

John — continued. 

ix.  24 

397 

ii.  4 

233 

xii.  51 
xiii,  24 

397 
89 

iii.  19,27 
fF. 

I  232 

Test,     of    the 

Twelve 

iii.  31 

231 

Patriarchs  — 

iv.  9,  40 

231 

Levi.      iii. 

396 

iv.  18 

234 

xiii 

140 

iv.  23 

231 

xvii. 

138 

V.  9      fF. 
17  F. 

I  231 

Matt.    iii.  4 

267 

V.  34,  44 

232 

V.  16 

181 

vi.  4 

231 

V.  17 

155 

vi.  6&  fF 

233 

V.  23  f. 

289 

vii.  8,  22  ff 

.  231 

V.  27  f. 

43 

vii.  17 

231 

V.  28 

313 

vii.  18 

232 

V.  32 

350 

viii.  23 

231 

V.  48 

322 

viii.  29 

231 

vi.  25  f. 

264 

viii.  34 

232 

vii.  12 

S95 

viii.  44 

231,234 

vii.  13  f. 

322 

viii.  51  f. 

231 

ix.  13 

xxxix,  140,308 

ix.  14  fF., 

[231 

xi.  29 

279 

22 

xvi.  18 

157 

ix.  31 

231 

xvii.  25  f. 

131 

X.  17,25, 

[232 

xviii.  17 

157 

29 

xix.  9 

350 

xi.  16 

233 

xix.  11  f. 

263 

xii.  20  fF., 

|.231 

xxiii.  15 

167 

42 

xxiii.  23,  26 

156 

xii.  43 

232 

XXV.  41  fF. 

141 

xiii.  1     fF, 

[232 

Mark      v.  37 

393 

12  fF. 

vii.  11  fF. 
vii.  14  fF 

289 
xxxviii 

xiii   4,    12 
fF. 

[  193 

ix.  2 

393 

xiii.  34  F. 

232 

xii.  18  f. 

305 

xiii.  36,  37 

233 

xiv.  33 

393 

xiv.  11,  31 

232 

Luke        i.  15 

393 

xiv.  15,21 

232 

ii.  S6 

397 

xiv.  27  f. 

233 

vi.  4 

156 

XV.  8,  16 

232 

xii,  14 

xxxviii 

XV.  10 

232 

xvi.  18 

350 

XV.  11 

233 

xxii.  15 

267 

XV.  24 

232 

John        i.  14,  17 

231 

XV.  27 

233 

i.  20  fF., 

xvi.  2  f. 

233 

39  J 

•  232 

xvi.  8  F. 

181,  284 

i.  41,  45 

232 

xvi.  20  F. 

233 

i.  46 

232 

xvi.  23 

231 

INDEX  OF  PASSAGES 


John — continued. 
xvi.  33 
xvii.  4 
xvii.  6  f. 
xvii.  6,  9,  20 
xvii,  13 
xvii.  17 
xvii.  21  f. 
xix.  26  f. 
xix.  35 
XX.  4 
xxi.  7 
xxi.  18 
xxi.  22  f.,  24 
Acts         i.  14 

ii.  17,  18 

ii.  42 
iii.  21 

iv.  32,  36  f. 

V.  1  IF. 

v.6,7ff, 


10/ 


232 

232 

231 

233 

233 

231 

233 

233 

233 

395 

S95 

233 

233 

144,  392 

144 

142 

141 

143 

143,  390 

145 


vi.  1 
viii.  2 

ix.  2 
x. 

xii. 

xii. 

xii. 
xiii. 
xiii. 


12 
17 
23 
5 
11 
xiii.  14 

XV. 
XV.    1 

XV.  5 

XV.  13 

XV.  20,  29 

XV.  21 

XV.     40  -  1 
xvi.  5  j 
xvi.  6,  7  f. 
xvi.  11  f. 
xvi.  12,  16 
xvii,  1,10,15 
xvii.  2 
xvii.  4,  5  fF. 
xvii.  5  fF., 


•■Is} 


144 

145 

145 

150 

144 

392  f. 

390 

386 

390 

99 

152 

162 

151 

151 

393 

152 

99 

100 

81 
82 
81 
82 
85 

85 


Acts — continued. 
xviii.  1 
xviii.  2 
xviii.  4,  6  f. 
xviii.  7 
xviii.  18 
xviii.  23 
xix. 
xix.  1 

xix,  12,  13  I 
fF,18f.  f 
xix.  21f.,29 
xix.  23  fF,  I 
37  / 
xix.  40 
XX.  1,  3 
XX.  2  f. 
XX.  4  f. 
XX.  17-38 
XX.  31 
xxi.  18 
xxi.  20 
xxi.  23  f. 
xxi.  25 
xxiv.  14 
xxvii.  2 
Rom.         i.  7 
i.  8 

i.  9,  10,  ) 
llfF.,  . 
15   ) 
i.  18,  32  52 
i.  21  fF.   133 

i-  29  fF.,  ) 

30F.  P'"^ 

i.  32  49 

ii.  13  F.  182 

ii.  16  70 

ii.  17  122 

ii.  17  fF.  140 

ii.  18  96 

ii,  21  F,  138 

iii.  9,  22  139 

iv,  1 7  fF  9 

V.  1  ff,  124 

v.  5  125 

vi.  3  8 

vi,  18,  22  35 


413 


81 
123 
64 
16 

100,  393 

102 
101 
100 

101 

83 

102 

102 

83 

78 

83,  85 

101 

100 

152 

383 

393 

152,  393,  395 

145 

83 

122 

124 

121 


414 


INDEX  OF  PASSAGES 


Rom.  — continued. 

viii.  2,  12,  ( 
23,26  j 
viii.  12  fF. 
viii.  18  ff. 
ix.  1  ff. 
ix.  31 
X.  2ff 
X.  4 
xii.-xvi. 
xii.-xiv. 
xii.  1  f. 
xii.  3     ff., 
11,  13 
xii.  2 
xiii.  1-7 
xiii.  8  ff. 
xiii.  1 1 
xiii.  12 
xiii.  13  f. 
xiii.  14 
xiv.  1  -XV.  1 3 
xiv.  1-xv.  7 
xiv.  1  ff. 
xiv.  2,  5  f. 
xiv.  14,  20 
xiv.  17 
XV.  4 
XV.  7 

XV.  20ff.,22 
XV.  23 
XV.  26 
XV.  27 
XV.  30 
XV.  31 
xvi,  1 

xvi.  3,  7,  6 
xvi.  4-1 6 
xvi.  5, 14, 15 
xvi.  17  f. 
xvi.  19 
xvi.  23 
1  Cor.  i.-iv. 
i.  2 
i.  4  f. 
i.  12 
i.  13  ff 
i.  14  ff. 


125 

10 

200 

85,  205,  294 

139 

138,  167 

8 

132 

xxxvi 

6,  132 

132 

133 
325 
133 

10,  219 

133 

132 

8 

125 

133 

210 

125 

399 

125 

125 

8 

121 

99 

84 

9 

121 

85 

14 

122 

9 

122 

123,  125 

124 

16 

113 

15 

17 

72 

XXX,  15 

19 


1  Cor.- 


-continued. 

ii.  2 

1 

iii.  16 

2 

iii.  22 

72 

iv.  3,  8,  10  74 

iv.  12 

9 

iv.  14  f. 

63 

iv.  16 

9 

iv.  17 

83 

iv.  21 

63 

V. 

388,  392 

V.  4 

391 

V.  5 

46,67 

V.  9 

45 

V.  10  f. 

45,  56 

V.  11 

54 

vi.  1 

57 

vi.  9 

2 

vi.  9  f. 

54,  249 

vi.  10 

56 

vi.  11 

55 

vi.  12  f. 

65,  67 

vi.  12,  20 

52,  65 

vi.  15 

2 

vi.  19,  20 

35 

vii. 

39 

vii.  2,  3 

39 

vii.  4,  10 
f.,16 

[39 

vii.  6 

42 

vii.  8 

42 

vii.  8  ff. 

112 

vii.  10  f. 

350 

vii.  12  f.,  14  39 

vii.  12-17 

30 

vii.  12  f. 

69 

vii.  15 

33,  39 

vii.  17 

9,   79 

vii.  17  f. 

23,  33 

vii.  18 

65 

vii.  21 

34 

vii.  23 

35 

vii.  26 

112 

vii.  27,  28 

42 

vii.  32  ff. 

39 

vii.  35,  36 

42 

vii.  37 

42 

vii.  39 

32,  42,  351 

INDEX  OF  PASSAGES 


415 


I  Cor. — continued. 

1  Cor. — continued. 

vii.  40 

42 

xiv.  34,  35 

■9,37,38 

viii.  1,  4 

66,  67 

36  f. 

viii.  5 

67 

xiv.  39 

69 

viii.  7  ff. 

27,  64,  65 

XV. 

89 

viii.  9  f. 

65 

XV.  5 

395 

viii.  10-       1 

68 

XV.  7 

392 

12/ 

XV.  29 

XXX,  20 

viii.  13 

69,  125 

xvi.  1 

105 

ix.  1 

76 

xvi.  2 

16 

ix.  5 

394 

xvi.  5,  10 

83 

ix.  1-19 

65 

xvi.  5  ff. 

392 

ix.  21 

8 

xvi.  12 

72 

X.  1-11 

9 

xvi.  13  f. 

10,70 

X.  15 

10 

xvi.  1 5  f.  ) 

35,57,  88 

X.  16 

21 

14,  f 

X.  20 

67 

xvi.  l6 

192 

X.  23  f. 

65,67 

xvi.  20 

63 

X.  27 

10 

2  Cor.      i.  1 

14 

xi.  1 

9 

i.  13 

76 

xi.  2 

9 

i.  15  f. 

392 

xi.  2-16 

37 

i.  16 

83 

xi.  3  ff. 

65 

ii. 

48 

xi.  4  f., 

[-38 

ii.  1 

78 

13,  14  f. 

ii.  4 

392 

xi   8  f. 

39 

ii.  5-11 

391 

xi.  10 

38 

ii.  5 

107   391 

xi.  11  f. 

39 

ii.  9 

97 

xi.  16 

9,  37,  38,  79 

ii.  11 

67 

xi.  20 

61 

ii.  13 

59,83 

xi.  30 

21,62,  89 

iv.  2 

76,  163 

xi.  34 

10 

vi.  14  ff. 

29,45 

xii.  1-3 

19 

vii. 

48 

xii.  2  f. 

69 

vii.  5 

83 

xii.  3 

15 

vii.  6 

83 

xii.  4-30 

19 

vii.  8  ff. 

391,  392 

xii.  9 

101 

vii.  12 

107,  387,  392 

xii.  28 

18,  101 

vii.  13 

59 

xii.  31- 

I    TO 

vii.  13  f. 

83 

xiv.  1 

}19 

viii.  1  ff. 

84,98 

xiii. 

19,210 

viii.  2  ff. 

91 

xiv.  1  ff.-25  19 

viii.  6 

59 

xiv.  13,23 

}.9 

viii.  9 

8 

ff. 

viii.  17 

59,83 

xiv.  24 

344 

ix.  2,  4 

84 

xiv.  26,  27 
ff. 

}  16,  17 

x.-xiii. 
X.  7 

392 

75 

xiv.  34-38 

38 

x.  9,  10  f.  76 

416 


INDEX  OF  PASSAGES 


2  Cor. — continued. 

X. 


c.  11,124 
15/ 


X.  15 
xi.  3,  5 
xi.  8  f. 
xi.  9 
xi.  13  f. 
xi.  16 
xi.  23  fF. 
xii.  7  fF. 
xii.  11 
xii.  13-15 
xii.  14 
xii.  16 
xii.  16- 18 
xii.  20 
xiii.  1 
xiii.  2 
xiii.  11 
Gal.    i.,  ii. 
i.  2 
i.  4 
i.  6 
i.  7ff. 
i.  10 
i.  19 
i.  20 
i.  21 
ii.  4 
ii.  6 
ii.  9 
ii.  9  f. 
ii.  11  f. 
ii.  1 2  f. 
ii.  15 
ii.  20 
iii.  1 
iii.  2  f. 
iii.  4 
iii.  10  ff. 
iii.  22 
iii.  27 
iv.  8  f. 
iv.  10,  12 
iv.  13  fF. 
iv.  16 
iv.  17 


164 

164 

164 

97 

83,  84 

164 

76 

9 

9,76 

76,  165 

76 

392 

163 

76 

2 

392 

389 

80 

107 

105,  107,  111 

110 

107,  108 

107,  165 

165 

392 

107 

99 

164 

108 

151,392  f. 

162 

107,  150,  395 

164 

161 

8,  110 

107,  110 

109 

105 

109 

109 

8 

108 

107 

100,  102,  107 

165 

111,  165 


Gal.- 


Eph. 


-continued. 
iv.  19 

V.  1 

V.  2 

V.  6 

V.  7 

V.  10  fF. 

V.  11 

V.  12 

V.  13fF,15 

V.  13 

V.  20 

V.  2] 

V.  22  f. 

V.  25 

V.  26 
vi.  1 
vi.  2 
vi.  6 

vi.  6  fF.,  10 
vi.  11  fF. 


vi.  12 

i.  3  f. 

i.  4 

i.  9,  17  F. 

i.  15 

i.  19 

ii.  1  fF 

ii.  3 

ii.  3  F. 
ii. 


6 


ii.  10 

ii.  14  F. 

ii.  19,20 
iii.  3  fF.,  I 
17,  19/ 
iii.  20 
iv.  2  f.,  1 
11  fF./ 
iv.  13  F. 
iv.  14,  15 
iv.  17 
iv.  19 
iv.  20  F 
iv.  25  F. 
iv.  26 
iv.  28,  29 

V.  2 


110 

109,  110 
107 
110 

105,  108 
107,  165 
165 
166 

110,  188 
110 
104,  110 

2,  104 

3,  101 

10, 109 

110 
110 

8,  110 

88,  106 

110 

107 

165 

179 

177 

177 

189 

179 

178 

178 

178,  184 

179 

177 

177,184 

184 

177 

179 

188 

187 

194 

186 

178 

184 

186,  187 

188 

187 

177,  184 


INDEX    OF   PASSAGES 


417 


Eph. — continued. 

Phil. — continued. 

V.  3 

187 

iii.  17 

9 

V.  4 

187 

iii.  18  f. 

123, 166 

V.  8 

178 

iii.  20 

9Q 

V.  11 

181 

iii.  21 

96 

V.  18 

177,  182 

iv.  1 

94 

V.  21 

182 

iv.  2  f. 

85,97 

V.  24 

184 

iv.  4 

95 

V.  25 

^184,  188 

iv.  5 

96,219 

V.  29 

*184 

iv.  6 

9Q 

V.  31 

183 

iv.  8  f. 

9,98 

V.  S3 

182 

iv.  9 

9 

vi.  9 

187 

iv.  10  ff. 

83,94 

vi.  11 

194 

iv.  15 

83,  84,  97 

vi.  14  ff. 

184 

iv.  16 

82 

vi.  18  f. 

177 

iv.  22 

122,  124 

Phil.        i.  1 

96 

Col.          i.  2 

105 

i.  5 

95 

i.  4 

105,  189 

i.  6,  8,  9 

94 

i.  7 

103 

i.  12-18 

124 

i.  8,  9  ff 

105, 106 

i.  13,  14 

i  123,  124 

i.  12f.,  S 

3  113 

fF, 

ii.  1 

100,  103 

1.  15  ff. 

■  86,  166 

ii.  5 

105,  114 

1.  18 

166 

ii.  7,  9  ff 

113 

i.  19 

94 

ii.  11  ff 

111 

i.  23 

95 

ii.  16 

112 

i.  24 

94 

ii.  18 

113 

i.  26 

84 

ii.  16,  21 

111 

i.  27 

95,97 

ii.  23 

112,  113 

•   i   28  f. 

9Q 

iii.  1  ff. 

113 

i.  30 

9 

/  2,3,114,1 
1  244 

ii.  2  f. 

97 

iii.  5 

ii.  5  ff. 

8,97 

iii.  5  ff. 

4 

ii.  12 

94,95 

iii.  8 

105,  187 

ii.  13 

96 

iii.  13  f. 

8,  114 

ii.  14,17, 
18 

}  94,  95 

iii.  16 
iii.  18-iv. 

8,  114 
2  4 

ii.  15 

.96,  135 

iii.  22  f. 

105 

ii.  19 

84,94 

iv.  5 

9,  10 

ii.  21 

166 

iv.  6 

105 

ii.  24,25, 
28 

I  84 

iv.  10 

/  83,    85,    1 
(  103 

ii.  25-30 

94 

iv.  14 

85 

ii.  29  f. 

88 

iv.  17 

116 

iii.  1,  7  ff 

95 

1  Thess.  i.  1 

86 

iii.  2  ff. 

85,96 

i.  3 

90 

iii.  12,  15 

94 

i.  6 

9,87 

iii.  14 

317 

i.  7 

90,98 
27 

102, 


418 


INDEX    OF  PASSAGES 


1  Thess. — continued. 

i.  9 

(  85,     89,     91, 
1  202 

ii.  5  ff. 

86 

ii.  6  f. 

91 

ii.  7,  11 

86 

ii.  9 

9,82 

ii.  10  f. 

9 

ii.  11 

88 

ii.  14 

85,87 

ii.  15    f., 
17  ff.. 

I  85 

ii.  19 

90,  91,  94 

iii.  3  ff. 

87 

iii.  6 

86,90 

iii.  9,  13 

90,91 

iii.  10,  12 

86 

iv.  1  ff 

2 

iv.  3  ff 

209 

iv.  3,  6 

90 

iv.  9  f. 

88 

iv,  10  ff. 

86,92 

iv.  12 

9 

iv.  13 

89,91 

V.  1  ff. 

91 

V.  6-8 

92 

V.  8 

90 

V.   11 

88 

V.  1 2  f. 

88,  192 

V.  14 

92 

V.  15 

90 

V.  19  f. 

92,  221 

V.  23 

91 

V.  25,26, 

27 

{■87 

2  Thess.  i.  1 

86 

i.  4 

87 

ii.  1  ff. 

91 

ii.  2 

91 

ii.  15 

87 

iii.  1 

87 

iii.  6 

QS 

iii.  7 

9 

iii.  8 

91 

iii.  14  f., 
15,  16 

^93 

iii.  17 

91 

1  Tim.      i.  3 

84 

1  Tim. 


2  Tim. 


-continued. 

i.  4ff 

254 

i.  5 

255 

i.  9f. 

306,  307 

i.  13 

307,  308 

i.  15 

301,  308 

i.  19  f. 

271 

i.  20 

253,  391 

ii.  1-4 

291 

ii.  2 

292 

ii.  8 

287,  289 

ii.  9 

303 

ii.  9  f. 

305 

ii.  1  4  f 

305 

ii.  15 

262 

iii.  1  ff. 

284 

iii.  2 

300 

iii.  4  f. 

305 

iii.  7 

294 

iii.  8  ff. 

285 

iii.  15 

290 

iv.  3 

261,  266 

iv.  3  ff 

288,  304,  397 

iv.  7 

254 

iv.  8 

259 

iv.  12 

285 

V.   1 

286,  290 

V.  8 

305 

V.  13 

283 

V.  17,  19 

285 

V.  18 

279 

V.  20,  21 

290 

V.  23 

304 

vi.  1  f. 

306 

vi.  4 

254 

vi.  6  ff 

304 

vi.  9f. 

303 

vi.  11  ff. 

281 

vi.  13 

293 

vi.  17 

303 

vi.  17  ff 

304 

vi.  20 

254 

i.  6  ff 

292 

i.  8,  12 

292  ' 

i.  15 

253 

i.  18 

301 

ii.  2 

281 

ii.  3 

292 

INDEX    OF  PASSAGES 


419 


2  Tim. 

— continued. 

ii.  3-7 

285 

ii.  9  ff. 

292 

ii.  11 

292 

ii.  14,16,  ] 
23 

■254 

ii.  17 

253 

ii.  18 

258 

ii.  20 

290 

ii.  22 

281 

ii.  24  f. 

290 

iii.  1  ff. 

268 

iii.  3 

306 

iii.  6 

264 

iii.  8 

253 

iii.  10 

285 

iii.  10  ff. 

292,  293 

iii.  15  ff. 

279 

iv.  2 

290 

iv.  3 

271 

iv.  6  ff 

292 

iv.  10 

85 

iv.  14 

253 

Titus 

i.  5 

284,  295 

1.6 

305 

i.  8 

300 

i.  13 

290 

i  16 

254 

ii.  1  ff. 

281 

ii.  4  f. 

305 

ii.  7 

285 

ii.  9  f. 

306 

ii.  11  f. 

290 

ii.  15 

285 

iii.  1 

281,  292 

iii.  2 

294 

iii.  3  f. 

307 

iii.  8 

301 

iii.  9 

254 

Philem.  1,  2,  5,  7 

116 

13 

386 

19-22 

116 

24 

83,  85 

Heb. 

ii.  1  ff 

197 

ii.  2 

197 

ii.  17  f. 

185 

iii.6, 14, 18  197 

iii.  7  ff 

197 

Heb. — continued. 
iii.  12 
iv.  1 

iv.  11,  14 
iv.  15 
V.  7  ff 
V.  1 1  ff 
V.  12 
vi.  1 

vi.  10,  11 
ix.  14 
X.  19,23,  ( 
24  / 
X.  25 
X.  32  ff. 
X.  S5 
xi. 

xi.  13  ff. 
xi.  35  ^. 
xii.  1 
xii.  2  f. 
xii.  3 
xii.  5  ff. 
xii.  25 
xiii.  1,  2,  3 
xiii.  4  f. 
xiii.  9 
xiii.  13 
xiii.  15,  1 6 
xiii.  1 7,  1 8  f. 
xiii.  22 
xiii.  23 
James       i.  2  ff. 
i.  4 
i.  5 
i.  9ff 
i.  10,  12 
i.  21 
i.  22 
i.  27 
ii.  1  f. 
ii.  2 
ii.  6 
ii.  12 
ii.  14  ff. 
ii.  15  f. 
iii.  1 
iii.  13  ff. 


197 

198 

197 

185 

185 

199 

196 

199,  200,  208 

200 

197,  202 

197 

197,201 

197 

197 

207 

1.99 

198 

200 

198 

197 

198 

197 

201 

203 

201 

198 

202 

201 

196 

201 

292 

308 

302 

303,  304 

292 

306 

301 

289 

291 

303 

303 

278 

300 

301 

254 

255 


420 


INDEX   OF  PASSAGES 


James — continued. 

1  Peter — 

continued. 

iii.  17 

281,  301 

V. 

10 

187 

iv.  8 

306 

V. 

12 

189 

iv.  13  fF. 

303 

1  John  i. 

1 

219 

V.  1  fF. 

303 

i. 

5 

223 

V.  6 

303 

i. 

6,  10 

223,  255 

V.  7,9 

304 

i. 

8  fF. 

170,  229 

V.  12 

308 

ii. 

3 

222 

V.  13 

307 

ii. 

3F 

255 

V.  14 

286 

ii. 

4 

223 

V.  16 

289 

ii. 

7 

219 

V.  19  f. 

290 

ii. 

9 

225,255 

1  Peter  i.  1,  17 

179 

ii. 

13  F 

220 

i.  2,14,22 

177,  178,188 

ii. 

16 

230 

i.  3,  21 

177 

ii. 

18,28 

219 

i.  6f. 

189 

ii. 

18  fF. 

254 

i.  6,  8 

177 

ii. 

19 

222 

i.  13,22 

183 

iii. 

2 

223 

i.  14 

178 

iii. 

3 

228 

i.  15,  22 

188 

iii. 

4,  6fF. 

223 

ii.  1 

178 

iii. 

7 

230 

ii.  8 

177 

iii. 

10 

225 

ii.  9 

178 

iii. 

10  F 

255 

ii.  11 

178,  179 

iii. 

11,23 

219 

ii.  12,  15 

181 

iii. 

14 

255 

ii.  13  f. 

182 

iii. 

16  F, 

{►229 

ii.  16,  17 

188 

18 

ii.  21  fF. 

184 

iii. 

17 

169,  301 

iii.  1,  20 

177 

iv. 

1  fF. 

221,  254 

iii.  1  F.,  3  F 

181,  183 

iv. 

7  F 

255 

iii.  5  F. 

183 

iv. 

7fF.,  2] 

219 

iii.  7 

178 

iv. 

7,20 

255 

iii.  8 

188 

iv. 

8 

225 

iii.  10-12 

183 

iv. 

20 

169,  225,  229 

iii.  15  F. 

181 

V. 

4F. 

220 

iii.  19  F 

178 

V. 

16  F 

229 

iv.  1 

184 

V. 

18 

223 

iv.  3  F 

178,179 

V. 

21 

219 

iv.  6,  7 

177,  178 

2  John 

5  F. 

219 

iv.  8,  9,  \ 

>  188 

6F 

225 

10  F  j 

7fF. 

254 

iv.  12  fF. 

189 

9 

223 

iv.  15 

180 

10  F 

224 

iv.  16 

188 

11 

225 

iv.  17  F. 

177,178 

3  John 

7 

219 

V.  1  fF. 

190 

9,  15 

220 

v.  8F 

177,189 

JuDE 

11,23 

253 

V.  9 

188 

19 

255 

INDEX   OF   PASSAGES 


421 


Rev.         i.  5 

220 

1  Clem. — continuec 

i.  20 

226 

xiii.  1 

209 

ii.,  iii. 

225 

xiv.  1 

215 

ii.  2 

226 

xvi.  1,  17 

209 

ii.  4 

229 

xvii.  1 

208 

ii.  5,  16 

219 

xix.  2  fF. 

209 

ii.  6,14,20  219,253,269 

xxi.  3 

209 

ii.  7,  1 1 

220 

xxi.  5 

215 

ii.  9 

226,  230 

xxi.  6 

205 

ii.  13 

226 

xxi.  6,  8 

208 

ii.  17,26 

220 

xxiii.-xxvii. 

209 

ii.  19 

229 

xxix.  1 

206 

ii.  24 

226 

XXX.    1 

209 

ii.  25 

219 

XXX.  3 

207 

iii.  3,  1 1 

219 

xxxi.  2 

207 

iii.  4 

228 

xxxii.  3 

207 

iii.  5,12,21 

220 

xxxiii. 

207 

iii.  8 

229 

xxxiii.  8 

207 

iii.  9 

226,  231 

xxxiv.  1  f.,  2 

207 

iii.  11,20 

219 

XXXV.  4 

209 

iii.  18 

228 

xxxv.  5 

209 

vi.  9  fF. 

227 

xxxviii.  1,  2 

204 

vii.  9 

383 

xxxviii.  2 

208,210 

xiv.  3 

228 

xl.  f. 

206 

xiv.  4 

228,261 

xlii.,  xliii.,  xliv 

206 

xvii.  1  f. 

228 

xliv.  3 

208 

xxii.  20 

219 

xliv.  4 

214 

xlvi.  4 

208 

1  Clem,  inscr. 

208 

xlvi.  9 

204 

i.  1 

203,215 

xlvii,  4 

208 

i.  2-ii.  8f.  211,  212 

xlviii.  5 

216 

i.  3 

213 

xlix. 

210 

ii.  1 

209,  213 

liii. 

205 

ii.  8 

208 

liv.  3 

205 

iii.  1-4 

214 

Iv.  2 

204 

v.,  vi. 

210 

Ivi.  1 

204 

V.  7 

207 

Ivii. 

215 

vi.  1 

383 

Iviii.  1 

204 

vi.  2  f. 

208 

Iviii.  2 

204,  208 

vii.  1 

207 

lix.  1 

204 

vii.  4-viii. 

208 

lix.  2-lxi. 

206 

ix.-xii. 

208 

lix.  2 

205 

ix.  6 

207 

lix.  4 

204 

X.  7 

207 

Ix.  1  f. 

208 

xi. 

207 

Ixii.  2 

208 

xi.  2 

207 

Ixii.  3 

217 

xii. 

208 

Ixiii.  2,  3 

204 

xiii.-xx. 

208 

Ixiv.,  Ixv.  2  206 

42^ 


INDEX   OF  PASSAGES 


1  Clem. — continued 

Ad  Eph. — continued. 

Ixv. 

204 

i.  3 

383 

2  Clem.   i. 

288 

iii.  1 

236 

ii.  4 

308 

V.  2 

243 

hi.  4 

289 

V.  3 

245 

iv.  3 

289 

vi.  2 

237 

vi.  9 

308 

vii.  1 

245,  253,  270 

vii.  6 

308 

viii.  1 

246 

viii.  6 

308 

viii.  2 

238 

xiii.  3  f. 

295 

ix. 

246 

XV.   1 

280,  290 

ix.  1 

245 

xvi.  4 

287,  302 

X. 

248 

xvii.  1 

290 

X.    1 

291 

xvii.  3 

302 

xi.  1 

238,  247 

xix. 

344 

xi.  2 

241,  247 

xix.  1 

285 

xii. 

247 

xix.,  XX. 

292 

xii.  2 

236 

Barnabas  i.  4 

301 

xiii.  1 

246 

i.  6 

301 

xiv.  2 

238,  248 

ii.  6 

279 

XV. 

242 

ii.  9 

293 

XX, 

238,  242 

ii.  10 

289 

xxi.  2 

236,  241 

iii. 

288 

Ad  Mag.  i. 

237 

iv-  8 

293 

iii.  1 

243 

iv.  10 

296 

iv. 

243,  246,  248 

V.  9 

308 

V. 

238 

vi.  11 

307 

vii. 

246 

vii.  1 

288 

X.   1 

246,  247 

vii.  11 

292 

xi. 

246 

ix.  4 

293 

xii. 

236,  237 

X. 

279,  306,  399 

xiv. 

236,  241 

X.  4 

304 

Ad  Trail,  i.  2 

247 

X.  9 

293 

iii.  1 

242 

X.   11 

296 

iii.  2 

243 

xi.  8 

301 

iii.  3 

236 

xiv.  1,  4 

293 

iv. 

236 

XV.  9 

288 

V. 

238,  242 

xvi.  1 

293 

V.  2 

236 

xvi.  2 

288 

vi.  2 

275 

xvi.  4 

293 

viii.  1 

246 

xviii.-xx. 

xxxvi 

viii.  2 

248 

xix.  2 

288 

X. 

245 

xix.  8 

302 

xiii. 

241 

xix.  10 

296 

xiii.  1 

236 

xix.  11 

302 

Ad  Rom.  inscr. 

237 

Ignatius  — 

iii.  1 

204 

Ad  Eph.  i.  1 

241,  247 

iii.  2,  3 

248 

.  i.  2 

236 

iv.  2 

241 

INDEX   OF  PASSAGES 


423 


Ad  Rom.  inscr. — continued. 

Ad  Philad. — continued. 

iv.  3 

236 

vi. 

1 

243 

iv.,  V. 

236 

x. 

1 

247 

V.    1 

236 

xi. 

244 

ix. 

241 

xi. 

2f. 

247 

ix.  2 

236 

xiii. 

241 

ix.  3 

241 

xiv. 

242 

X. 

241 

Hermas — 

X.  2 

241 

Vis.  I. 

i. 

312,  354 

Ad  Philad.  ii.  1 

237 

)> 

i. 

8 

356 

iii.  2 

242 

)> 

i. 

9 

323,  342 

iv. 

246 

)» 

ii. 

1 

321,  340 

vi. 

246 

i> 

ii. 

4 

311,  341,  351 

vii. 

238, 

291 

1) 

iii. 

1 

320,  345 

X. 

241 

)) 

iii. 

2,3 

342 

xi. 

241 

)) 

iii. 

3,4 

343 

xi.  1 

242 

)■> 

iv. 

2 

333,  343 

Ad  Smyr.  ii. 

245 

>> 

iv. 

3 

319 

iv.  2 

236 

II. 

i. 

4 

310 

V. 

245 

j^ 

ii. 

343 

vi.  2 

245, 

255 

)> 

ii. 

2 

315 

vii.  1 

245, 

255 

)) 

ii. 

3 

352,  353 

viii.  1 

242 

)} 

ii. 

4 

318,  323 

ix.  1 

243 

}> 

ii. 

4,5 

341,  342 

X. 

242 

>) 

ii. 

5 

330 

xi. 

241 

}> 

ii. 

6 

335 

xi.  3 

241 

}) 

ii. 

7 

318 

xii. 

241 

)) 

iii. 

1 

352,  353 

xiii. 

244 

}> 

iii. 

1  f. 

340 

Ad  Polyc.  ii. 

238 

>) 

iii. 

2 

311,  324 

ii.  1 

239 

>) 

iii. 

4 

318,331 

ii.  2 

242 

3 

J  326,  335,  344 

iv.  2 

246 

}} 

iv. 

1  345,  353 

iv.  3 

249 

III. 

i. 

2 

311 

V.   1 

249 

}} 

i. 

6 

317 

V.  2 

249 

» 

i. 

8 

311,336 

vi.  2 

249 

}> 

i. 

9 

329 

vii.  3 

241 

}} 

ii. 

1 

329,  330,  332 

POLYCARP 

)} 

ii. 

2 

324,  353 

Ad  Philad.  i.  2 

247 

3) 

ii. 

4 

341 

ii. 

248 

)) 

ii. 

6 

333 

ii.  2 

249 

}} 

iii. 

1 

319 

iii.  2 

247 

}> 

iii. 

3 

342 

iii.  3 

240 

}> 

iii. 

4 

316 

iv.  1  f. 

244 

»> 

iii. 

5 

341 

iv.  3 

244, 

249 

}} 

iv. 

3 

316 

V.  2 

243 

}> 

V. 

1 

323,  336 

V.  3 

244 

)} 

V. 

2 

329 

424 


INDEX   OF   PASSAGES 


is.  III. — continued. 

Mand. 

IV. 

— continued. 

}} 

V.  4 

345 

3J 

i. 

9 

333,  335, 

}} 

V.  5 

330,  341 

)> 

ii. 

1 

312 

S) 

vi.  2 

333,  342 

JJ 

ii. 

4 

324 

)} 

vi.  5 

332,  356 

>> 

iii. 

1 

341 

f> 

vi.  6 

357 

)3 

iii. 

2 

342 

>> 

vi.  7 

357 

33 

iii. 

2,  4f. 

330 

» 

vii.  3 

348 

J3 

iii. 

6 

330 

}} 

vii.  6 

312 

3J 

iii. 

1 

324,  360 

)) 

viii.  8,  9 

342 

5> 

iv. 

4 

351 

S3 

viii.  11 

342,  344,  353 

V. 

346 

>J 

ix. 

343 

>) 

i. 

2 

319 

» 

ix.  2 

359 

5> 

i. 

7 

324 

}) 

ix.  2,  10 

339 

3i 

ii. 

352 

)} 

ix.  3 

322 

J) 

ii. 

1  f. 

316 

)> 

ix.  5 

322 

)) 

ii. 

3 

319 

)i 

ix.  6 

357 

)) 

ii. 

8 

324 

33 

ix.  7 

335,  336,  337 

VI. 

i. 

4 

322 

33 

ix.  7  f. 

336 

5) 

i. 

5 

324 

>> 

ix.  8 

353 

VII. 

2 

318 

33 

ix.  10 

319 

VIII. 

3 

350 

33 

X.  4  f. 

319 

3i 

3ff. 

346 

33 

X.  6 

340 

J> 

10 

347,  354 

33 

X.  7 

341 

IX. 

h 

7 

316 

3J 

xii.  3 

339 

J5 

8 

312 

IV 

i.  4,7 

316 

X. 

318 

33 

i.  8 

318 

3J 

i. 

2 

319 

33 

ii.  2 

319 

3J 

i. 

4 

334,  356 

>l 

ii.  4 

318 

)3 

i. 

6 

318,  322 

33 

ii.  5 

318,  320,  324 

i3 

ii. 

2 

319 

33 

ii.  6 

318 

)3 

iii. 

2 

319 

)) 

iii.  4 

353 

XI. 

275,  337 

>> 

iii.  6 

342,  344 

3i 

1 

316 

V. 

312 

J> 

2 

338 

5> 

7 

322,  360 

3) 

4 

334,  357 

[anc 

.1.       2 

346 

>3 

5fF. 

283 

II. 

346 

>) 

9 

344,  352 

..         If. 

349,  342 

3} 

12 

337,  338 

.,         4 

359,  360 

)3 

13 

338,  344 

„         4,6 

294 

5J 

14 

291 

.       6 

324,  358 

XII. 

i. 

2 

357 

III. 

346 

5> 

iii 

3 

309 

3 

313 

31 

iii 

4 

317 

4 

313,356 

3} 

iv. 

2  f.,  3 

322 

5 

324 

J> 

iv. 

4 

318 

IV. 

346 

>> 

V. 

1 

317 

.,     i.  1 

350,  351 

>) 

vi 

2 

318 

„     i.  4,4-8 

350 

]) 

vi 

3 

317 

INDEX   OF   PASSAGES 


425 


sim.   I. 

325 

Sim. 

IX.—co/dinued. 

}} 

5,  7 

322 

>) 

xi. 

351 

j> 

8 

358, 

359 

JJ 

xi.  5 

319 

}i 

10 

333, 

334 

)) 

xi.  7 

311,343 

III. 

2 

361 

!) 

xii.  4,  6,  8 

341 

IV. 

4 

334 

>J 

xiii. 

342 

V. 

i. 

1 

340 

JJ 

xiii.  2 

333 

j> 

i. 

3ff. 

341 

JJ 

xiii.  5 

339 

5> 

ii. 

2,7 

354 

JJ 

xiv.  6 

318 

}> 

iii. 

3 

311, 

321 

)) 

XV.  4,  6 

323 

)) 

iii. 

7 

360 

JJ 

xvi. 

341 

» 

iii. 

7-9 

341 

>> 

xvi.  5  f. 

323 

>> 

iii. 

9 

322 

J> 

xvii.  5 

330 

)l 

vi. 

5f. 

323 

>> 

xviii.  4 

362 

VI. 

i. 

1 

317 

JJ 

xix.  2 

255,  333 

» 

i. 

3 

323 

JJ 

xix.  3 

338 

» 

i. 

4 

360 

JJ 

XX.   1  f. 

356 

>5 

i. 

6 

319 

!) 

XX.  2 

332,  333 

)) 

ii. 

3 

330, 

360 

JJ 

xxi.  1 

318 

>^ 

ii. 

6 

320 

JJ 

xxii. 

337 

» 

iii. 

4f. 

312 

JJ 

xxii.  2,  3 

338 

JJ 

iii. 

6 

312, 

320 

JJ 

xxiii.  4 

322 

^^ 

iv. 

2,4 

311 

J> 

xxiv.  2 

358,  360 

>) 

V. 

5,7 

320 

JJ 

xxiv.  2-4 

359 

VII. 

1,2 

311 

JJ 

xxiv.  4 

361 

t> 

3 

320 

JJ 

XXV.  2 

323 

)J 

4 

312, 

318,  320 

JJ 

xxvi.,  xxvii. 

327,335 

VIII. 

i. 

5 

390 

JJ 

xxvi.  2 

336 

>> 

iii. 

2 

323 

JJ 

xxvi.  3 

331,333 

>J 

iii. 

6 

328 

JJ 

xxvii. 

336 

J} 

vi. 

-xi. 

330, 

341 

JJ 

xxvii.  3 

361 

J} 

vi. 

2 

318 

JJ 

xxviii. 

329 

}} 

vi. 

3 

342 

JJ 

xxviii.  2 

318 

?) 

vi. 

4 

330 

JJ 

xxviii.  3 

329,  332 

JJ 

vi. 

5 

337 

JJ 

xxviii.  4  f. 

331 

}} 

vii. 

4 

337 

JJ 

xxviii.  4 

330 

>} 

dii. 

I 

333 

JJ 

xxviii.  5  f. 

329 

J) 

ix. 

1 

333 

JJ 

xxix. 

342 

)> 

ix. 

3 

333, 

337 

JJ 

XXX.  5 

357 

JJ 

ix. 

1,3 

334 

JJ 

xxxi.  4 

342 

J» 

X. 

3 

358 

JJ 

xxxi.  5 

335 

)5 

xi. 

3 

318, 

360 

X. 

ii.  1  f. 

342 

IX. 

ii. 

6f. 

343 

JJ 

iii.  2 

353 

JJ 

ix. 

7 

319j 

339 

JJ 

iv.  2 

322 

JJ 

x. 

1 

319 

JJ 

iv.  2  f. 

359 

JJ 

x 

2f. 

353 

DiDACHE 

J) 

X 

3 

319 

i.-vi. 

xxxvi 

JJ 

X 

7 

319 

i.  5 

302 

426 


INDEX   OF   PASSAGES 


D I D  ACHE — continued. 


i.  6 

iv.  2 

iv.  7 

iv.  8 

vi.  2 
vii. 

viii.  1 

viii.  3 

ix.  5 

X.  7 

xi.  1,  3 

xi.  7 

xi.  8  fF. 

xii.  3  f. 

xii.  4 

xiii.  4 

xiii.  7 

xiv.  1  f. 

XV.  1 

XV.  3 
xvi. 

xvi.  2 


302 

296 

302 

302 

279 

288 

287,  293 

287 

291 

282 

282 

282 

283 

304 

299 

282 

297 

288,289 

282,  285 

289 

293 

296 


Acta  Andrew,  ed.  M.  Bonnet, 
Acta  apostolorum  apocrypha, 
II.,  1898,  pp.  1-64— 

Passio  11,  p.  27        268 
12,  p.  28        257 

Acta       8,  p.  41        262 

Mart,  i    7,  p.  50        265 

Acta  Johannis  (as  above) — 

pp.  151-216 

5  p.  153  257 

6  p.  154  267,  398 
29  p.  166  258 

97.  101  199  ff-  273 

113  p.  213  262 

Ps.  Abdias,  v.  14      266 

Acta  Thom^,  ed.  M.  Bonnet, 
Suppl.  codicis  apocryphi,  I., 
1883— 

1.  5  pp.  10,  6  398 
i.  6.  8  pp.  7  fF.  390 
i.  12  p.  11  262,  264 

ii.  20  p.  16  257,  267 

ii.  28  p.  21  261,  264 

ii.  29  p.  22  267 

iii.  36  p.  27  264 


Acta  Thom^ — continued. 
iii.  37  p.  28  259 

vi.  52  ff.  257 

vi.  55  p.  42  257 

vi.  58  p.  43  265 

viii.  p.  53  272 

ix.  p.  5Q  257 

ix.  p.  57  265 

ix.  p.  60  265 

ix.  p.  64  267 

xii.  p.  81  265 

Mart.  p.  87  258 

„      p.  89  265 

Acta    Petri    cum    Simone,    ed. 
Lipsius,      Acta      apostolorum 
apociypha,  I.,    1890 — 
2  p.  46  391 

Acta     Petri    et    Andrew,     ed. 
Bonnet,      Acta      apostolorum 
apocrypha,  II.,  1898 — 
20  p.  126  385 

HoMiLi^  Clementis 

iii.  22  263 

XV.  7  398 

XV.  9  265 

XV.  10  265 

Recog.  vii.  6  398 

ix.  6  398 

Ep.  Clem,  ad  Jac.  1  157 

Protev.  Jac,  16      390 

Ps.  Matt.,  xii.  390 

Justin — 

Dial,  xlvii.  I69 

Iren^us,  adv.  Hger. — 

I.         vi.  3  270 

I.     xxiv.  2  261 

I.     xxvi.  2  171 

I.  xxviii.  1  261 

III.        iii.  4  224 

Origines,  c.  Cels. — 

III.  59  xxxix 

VIII.  30  393,  398 

Hippo LYTus,  Refut. — 

ix.  12  385 

Eusebius,  Hist.  Eccles.— 

II.  i.  3  393 

II.  i.  4  395 

II.    xxiii.  4  393 


INDEX   OF   PASSAGES 


427 


EusEBius — continued. 

11.    xxiii.  5  397 

III.         V.  168 

III.        XX.  168 

III.  xxxii.  168 

IV.  xxii.  ]  68 
\IV.  xxviii.  397 

V.           i.  14  386 

V.         iii.  2  f.  397 


Epiphanius,  Haer. — 

XXX.  13,16,  1267,397 

XXX.  15  398 

Ixxviii.  14  395 

Nic/EA,  18  Canon      193 
Marcus  Diaconus,  Vita  Porphyiii 

Gazensis  (Ed.  Teubn.) — 
89  p.  72  f.  390 


GENERAL   INDEX 

The  leading  references  are  printed  in  italics. 


Adultery,  xxv,  3,  4.Sf.,  138,  180, 
209,  230,  257,  272,  335,  346, 
349  f,  367. 

Adulterers,  234. 

Age  classification,  286. 

dyvota,  178. 

Alexandrine  Exegesis,  198. 

Allegorical  Interpretation,  72, 
149. 

a.WoTpLlTnCTKOITi'iV,    181. 

Alms,  1 5Q,  302. 

Ambiguity,  272. 

Ambition,   146,    215,    221,    232, 

284,  312,  338,  346. 
Ananias  and  Sapphira,  146  ff. 
Andrew,  Acts  of,  252,  262,  268. 
Angels,  38,  112,  202. 
avo/xia,  270. 
Antichrist,  91. 
Antinomianism,  224,  270. 
Antioch,  xxxiii,   99,    150,  l6l  f., 

235,  240. 
Antiochus  Epiphanes,  139- 
Apocalypse,    Jewish  (Steindorff, 

Elias-Apok.),  141. 

in  Hermas,  343. 

Apocalyptic,     Jewish,     89,    130, 

203. 
Apollos,  52,  62,  71,  77,  136. 
Apologists,  xxvii,  xxxii,  130,  179, 

263,  293,  371,  379. 
Apostasy,  190. 
from     Christianity,      xxvii, 

186,    191,   197  /.,    228,    233, 

315,  329  f. 
Final,  91,  268,  306. 


Apostasy  from  Paul,  107. 
Apostates,  l64,  330,  333. 
Apostle,  63,  74   £,  93   f.,    184, 

190,  247,  257,  282,  285,  291, 

295,  329,  339,  376. 
Apostles,  Acts  of  the,  xxix,  83, 

99,  143  f.,  147,  172. 
Apocryphal   Acts    of  the, 

252,  256,  274. 

False,  164,  227. 


Apostleship,  87,  107,  l64. 
Apostolic  succession,  206. 
Apostolical  Council,  99,  151. 

decree,  152,  172,  219. 

Aristides,  xxvii,  xxxiii,  363. 

Armour,  184,  194. 

Arrogance,  255,   346.     See  also 

Pride. 
Asceticism,  39,  69,  104,  111  /, 

139,    171,    201    f.,    209,    228, 

249,  251,  258-268,  211,  280, 

304,  373,  376  f. 
Asia  Minor,  99-120,  175-194. 
Assemblies.     See  Meetings. 
arapa^ta,  1 . 
Athens,  13,  36,  82. 
Authority,  211. 

of  the  Apostle,  107. 

of  the    Church    Leaders, 

107. 
of  Jesus  Christ,  113. 


Balaam,  227,  253,  269. 
jSavauo-os,  92,  384. 
Barbai-ism,  364,  368. 
Barnabas,  99,  143,  150,  l62,  174. 


428 


GENERAL   INDEX 


429 


Barnabas,  Epistle  of,  xxxi,  278, 

282,  292  f. 
Baptism,   xxx,   19   f.,    14.2,    243, 

288,  308,  341,  348. 

for  the  dead,  20,  66,  178. 

Baptismal    nai'rative    in    Gospel 

of  the  Hebrews,  170. 
Beatitudes,  156. 
Begging,  158,  170. 
Belief.     See  Faith. 
Beneficence,      141,     320.       See 

Charity. 
Beyond,  The,  308. 
Birth,  xxvi,  286. 
Bishops,    96,     106,     205,     239, 

242    f,    282,    284,    300,    327, 

335,  339,  375. 
Bitterness,  352. 
Blasphemy,  charge  made  against 

Christians,  102. 
Blaspheming  Christ,  186,  330. 
Blessing  and  cm*se,  188. 
Blood,  Eating  of,  152. 
Body,  132,  259- 

Care  of  the,  267. 

Discipline  of  the,  112,259- 

Bond  men,  xxv. 

women,  xxv. 

service,  202. 

Branding  of  runaway  slaves,  118, 

386. 
Brother,  Name  of,   xxvi,  39,  54, 

63. 
Brotherhood,  The,  118,  129,  158, 

182,  188,  212,  248,  286,  368. 
Brotherliness,  349- 
Brotherly  kiss,  63,  87. 
love,  86  f ,   169,   188,   194, 

201,  219,  229,  232,  255,  373. 
Burial,  xxvi,  145,  241,  286. 
Business  intercourse,  24,  90,  203, 

209,  314,  356. 
interests,  303,  356. 

Cain,  Cainites,  262,  271. 
Calumnies,    xxvii,    55,    64,    105, 

130,   178,  209,  244,  249,  257, 

321,  346. 


Care  for  the  belly,  26l. 

other  churches,  204. 

the  family,  233. 

strange  brethren,  21 6. 

Casuistry,  139- 
Catechism,  279,  345  f. 
Catechumens,  346  f,  374. 
Catholicism,   109,  174,  205,  277 

ff.,  308. 
Celibacy,  39  if,  69,  137. 

Clerical,  285. 

Celsus,  xxxix,  371. 

Ceremonial.    See  Divine  Service. 

duties,  141. 

Charismatics,  211,  2l6,  221,  242, 

282  f 
Charity,  Organised,  294,  £96  ff.,        / 

378.  ^ 


Works  of,  xxvi,  201,  357  f. 

Chastity,  2,40,  42,  53,  152,  181, 

210,  244,  249,   261   f,   305  f, 

346,  370. 
Cheerfulness,  319- 
Child-murder,  Ceremonial,  179- 
Children,  Innocence  of,  307,  342. 
Christianity,  246,  332. 

a  crime,  180. 

Christians,    Gentile,    64   f,   122, 

150,    155,    162,    171,    173    ff., 

184,  230. 
Jewish,    51,  64  f,   66,  72, 

84,    87,  138  ff.,   160,   168  ff., 

198  f,  270  f.,  372,  378. 
Christology,    5S,   223,    258,   273, 

322. 
Church,  The,  157,  187,  29O,  295, 

308,  374. 

Concern  for  the,  327,  335. 

Consciousness  of  forming  a, 

60,  19,87  ff'.,  96,  211. 

constitution,  xxxiii,  10,  63. 

discipline,  157,  289  f,  370. 

Leaders   of    the,    88,     97, 

215,  307. 

Meetings  of  the,  303,  310. 

The    Primitive,    13,     141- 


148,  152,  184,  230. 

—  Unity  of  the,  239,  242. 


430 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Churches,    Family  character    of, 

144,  157,  286  {.,  289. 
Circumcision,    65    f.,     107,    111, 

153,  162,  165,  230. 
Circus,  249. 
Cleanliness,  353. 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  258,  271, 

308. 
of  Rome,  1  st  Ep.  of,  xxx,  1 95, 

203-217,  250,  281,  287,  326. 
2nd     Ep.     of,     xxxii. 


278,  290. 
Clementine  Homilies,  184,  265. 
Clergy,  192,  247,  284,  290,  369. 
Clothing,  153,  183,  287,  303. 
Codex  Cantabrigiensis,  156. 
Collection,  The,  58  /'.,   76,  105, 

144,  162. 
Colony,  Roman,  11,  82,  97. 
Colossae,  102-107,  111-115,  126. 
Colossians,   Ep.    to  the,  3,  4  f, 

174,  182. 
Commerce,  xxv,  13,  100,  324. 
Communism,     56,    lJf.3    f.,    265, 

271,357. 
Community,  Duties  towards  the, 

279. 

Feeling    of,   60,    136,    142, 

188,  200,  247,  255,  275,   326, 
338,  373. 

Compassion,  I69,  257,  301,  369. 

Confession,  29,  156,  181,  196  f, 
202,  221,  226,  238,  240,  247, 
256,  289,  291,  328,  368,  373. 

Fear    of,    200,     255,     275, 

292,  361. 

Joyous,  145,  156,  210,  227, 


256,  371 
Confessors,  312  f ,  328  ff. 
Confidence,  307. 
Confiscation,  196,  292,  314,  328, 

357. 
Conscience,  28,  67,  175. 
Constitution,  62,  88,  1-57  j.,  174, 

189  f.,  201,  205,  21J^  f.,  220  f., 

S42ff.,  281  f,  335 f,  373. 
Contentment,     203,     208,      321, 

346. 


Continence,  111   f ,  228,  260  ff. 

266,  312,  320,  340,  346. 
a  grace,  41,  202,   210,  260, 

279  ff. 
Corinth,  Church  of,  xxxiii,  1 1  ff., 

11-80,  89,  99,  106,  109,  111, 

126,  129,   132,   135,  162,    175, 

203    f,    210-217,    227,     254, 

259,  270,  373. 
Corinth,  The  offence  in,  48,  392. 

Town  of,  1 1  if.,  382. 

Corinthians,   Eps.    to  the,   xxix, 

11-80,  91,  392. 
Cosmopolitanism,  365. 
Covetousness,  3,  249,  258. 
Culture,  364. 

Curse,  Effects  of  the,  46,  389  ff. 
Customs,  130. 
Cynics,  12,  23,  49,  52,  265. 

Deacons,  96,  IO6,  193,  240,  282, 

284,  327,  3S5,  339. 
Deaconesses,  180. 
Dead,  Fate  of  the,  88,  178. 
Death,  Cases  of,  62,  88,  286. 

Moral,  178. 

Decalogue,  141,  183. 

Deceit,  138,  146. 

Demons,  26  ff ,  67. 

Denial,  329,  334. 

Devil,  67,  194,  316,  325. 

hiacnropa.,  I6I. 

Didache,    xxxiii,    xxxvi   f,    278, 

288,  295  ff.,  310,  344. 
Dietetics,  127. 
Diligence,  92,  300. 
8nj/v)(^La,  316. 
Disciples,  150,  233. 
Discontent,  321,  352. 
Discord  in  the  Church,  98,   110, 

148,  167,  215,  220  f 
Dishonesty,  90,  346,  355. 
Disinterestedness  of  Paul,  86. 
Disobedience,  177,  197,  321. 
Divisions,  125,  205. 
Divorce,  32,  335,  350  ff. 
Docetism,   223,    238,    245,    258, 

273. 


GENERAL  INDEX 


431 


Doctrine,  Disputes  about,  191. 
Domestic    duties,    Table    of,    2, 

4  f.,  174,  182. 
Domination,  Desire  for,  I9I,  204, 

216,  284. 
Doubt,  316,  349. 
Drunkenness,  54,  64  f ,  178,  182, 

209,  305,  346. 
Dualism,  111,  258,  271,  280,  377. 
Duty,  Pastoral,  88,  201. 
of  reconciliation,  157,  289- 

Earnestness,  Moral,  xxxviii,  137, 

206  f 
Ecclesiasticism,  228. 
Ecstasy,  238,  242. 
Edification,    Meetings    for,    310, 

345. 
Education,    187,   208,   300,   304, 

353,  369. 
of     the    Church    by    the 

apostle,   XXXV  ff.,  1-10,   54  f., 

80,  87  f,  132,  203. 

of  the   individual   by   the 


Church,  213. 
Egoism,  165. 
Egypt,  126  f ,  277. 
Egyptians,   Gospel  of  the,    127, 

261  f,  267,  272. 
Election,  177. 
Emancipation,  64. 
of  women,  38,  65,  70,  183, 

217,  227,  305. 

of  slaves,    118,    239,    249, 


306. 

Embassies,  204,  241. 
Embezzling,  xxv,  180,  356. 
Emperor- worship,  100,  226,  367. 
Encratism,  41,  127. 
Enemies,     Love    of,     xxv,     295, 

347,  370. 
Enthusiasm,  QS,  92  f,    130,    145, 

177,  215,  374. 
Ephesians,  Ep.  to  the,  xxxi,  115, 

175-194. 
Ephesus,  xxxiii,  100  /.,  226,  228, 

233,  235,  245  f 
Epistles,  Catholic,  xxxi,  278. 


Equality    of  master    and    slave, 

35,  118. 

of  man  and  woman,  36  fF. 

Eschatology,     91    f.,    181,    258 

268,  293,  375. 
Esoteric  and  Exoteric,  273. 
Essenes  and  Essenism,  1 1 2,  1 26, 

139,  142,  145,  158,  259,  393  f. 
Eternity,  128,  179. 
Eusebeia,  307. 
ei'XP'OCTO';  (117),  357. 
Evil-doers,  180. 
Excesses,   3,    137,   178,  280,  286, 

320. 

in     eating    and    drinking, 

104,  132. 

Excommunication,    46,   93,    158, 

215. 
Exorcists,  101. 
Extortioner,  54. 

Faith,  109,  HO,  124,  I61,  177, 
194,  199,  207,  211,  226,  240, 
254,  301,  346  f 

Bold,  136,  257. 

Justification  by,  1 66,  207. 

Family,     114,     262,     304,     314, 

349  ff. 

events,  xxxiii,  286. 

Fanaticism,  51,  179- 

Fasting,     xxvi,    128,     156,    268, 

287,^302,  341,  360. 
Fast-days,  141,  287,  340. 
Feeding  the  poor,  147. 
Festivals,  Jewish,  107,  111,   125, 

165. 
Fidelity,  Connubial,  352. 
Fire-raising,   Christians    charged 

with,   129. 
Firstlings    ( =  earliest   converts), 

190. 
First-fruits,  297. 
Flesh,  Sins  of  the,  3,   113,    132, 

374. 
Food,    Regulations    as    to,     107, 

111,   126  f,   161   f,    165. 
Forbearance,    346.      See    Long- 
suffering. 


432 


GENERAL   INDEX 


Fornication,  xxv,  43  f.,  68,  90, 
138,  152,  170,  186  f.,  227, 
258,  261,  346,  349  f. 

Freedom,  51,  56,  65,  111,  129, 
136,    188,  270,  308,  305. 

Freethinking,  64,  227  f. 

Funds,  Church,  59,  284,  299- 

Society,  6l. 

for  sick  and  dead,  327. 

Galatia,  99  f-,  102-110,  125, 
136,  163  fF.,  373. 

Galatians,  Ep.  to  the,  102  fF.,  122. 

Galen,  263,  378. 

Gahleans,  144. 

Give,  Readiness  to,  60,  84,  ll6, 
136,  143,  200,  296  f. 

Glossolaly,  ]  8,  69. 

Gluttony,  258,  267,  320,  338, 
346. 

y,/«o-is,  66,  127,  171,  173,  193, 
224,  227,  246,  251-276,  277, 
280  f.,  300,  308,  337,  376  f. 

Gnosticism,  xxxiii,  171,  173. 

God,  Fear  of,  181,  208,  307,  321, 
346. 

Gospel,  138,  141,  251,  258  f, 
275,  279  f.,  308,  363,  376. 

Gospel  of  Paul,  70,  75. 

Gospels,  xxxii,  310. 

Gossip,  105,  187,  305. 

Greed,  102. 

Growth  of  the  Churches,  Out- 
ward, 174. 

Inward,  187. 

Guilt,  Feeling  of,  198,  312. 

Hades,    Preaching  of   Jesus  in, 

178. 
Hair,  Unshorn,  153. 
Hands,  Laying  on  of,  285. 
Hatred  of  Christians,  129  f ,  196. 

of  Humanity,  130. 

Health,  210. 

Heathendom,  3,  23  f.,  89,  133  f , 

151  t,\6\,178  f.,  218  f,  227, 
231,  269,  305  i,  333  f,  351, 
364  J;  368. 


Hebrews,  Ep.  to  the,  xxxi,  113, 

195-203,  207. 
Gospel  of  the,  xxxix,  I69, 

301. 
Hegesippus,      153,      168,      171, 

393. 
Hellenists,  147,  14-9  ff.,  218. 
Heresy,    l64,    171,    189,  193  f., 

201  f,  205,  223,   224  f,   237 

f,   240,  245  /.,    252    f,    281, 

304. 
Hermas,  Shepherd  of,    xxxii,  2, 

290,  307,  309-362. 
rj<jv^a.t,€iv ,  92. 
Hetairae,  37,  44,  138. 
Hierarchy,  189,  201,  238. 
Hierodules,  37,  44. 
High  priest,  Christ  as,  198. 

James  as,  154. 

Holiness,  146,  188,  342,  348. 
Holy   Ghost,  xxviii,    10,   15,   18, 

22,  53,  55,  109,  125,  147,  194, 

210,  278,  323,  372. 
Home,      Love     of,      147,     265, 

326. 
Honesty,  2,  313,  370. 
Honour,  Decree  of,  58. 

Places  of,  337,  347. 

Honourable  life,  212,   321,  323, 

346,  370. 

of  middle  classes,  179- 

in  country  disti'icts,  135. 

Hope,  177,   189,   197,  200,  203, 

209,  301. 
Hospitality,    158    f,    188,    201, 

207,  211,  216,  25.5,  299,  312, 

327,  357  jj-. 
House-churches,  122,  196. 
Household,    Father    of    a,    305, 

314  ff.,  345,  352. 
Humanity,  366,  370. 
Humility,    159,    188,    193,    208, 

209,  212,  232,  236,  243,  248. 
Hypocrisy,   139,    178,    272,  280, 

293,  346. 

Idols,  27  f ,  66,  89- 

Service  of,  3,  54,  178,  249. 


GENERAL   INDEX 


433 


Idols,   Sacrifice   to,   xxv,  ^^,  65, 

69,   125,    136,    152,   161,   186, 

219,  227,  266,  269. 
Ignatius,     xxxi,     204,    235-250, 

253,  268,  284. 
Ignorance,  Sins  of,  178,  308. 
Immaturity,  136. 
Immorality,  69,  l63. 
Incest,  44"  fF.,  52,  68. 
Indecision,  31  8. 
Indian  influences,  126. 
Individualism,    57,    62,    73,    79, 

211,  217,  280. 
Industries,  Great,  355. 
Innocence,  321,  34-6. 
Insincerity,  139- 
Insinuations    against    Paul,    59, 

75  f.,  107. 
against  the  Christians,  130, 

179,  286,  342  f. 

against  the  Gnostics,  275. 


Instruction,     Moral,    1    ff.,    104, 

208,  257,  345  f. 
Intellectualism,  225,  254  fF. 
Intercession,  194,  204,  212,  289, 

291. 

for  the  apostle,  87,  94. 

for  enemies,  156,  370. 

for  the  Jews,  154. 

for  rulers,  210,  292. 

with  martyrs,  241. 

Intercourse,  Social,  24,  334,  355. 
Inwardness,  156,  320,  347,  352. 
Itinerant  brethren,  295. 

James,  the  Lord's  brother, 
151  ff.,  168  ff:,  174,  218, 
392  fF. 

Ep.  of,  223,  264,  278,  289. 

Jerusalem,  99,  102,  123,  141, 
144,  168,  288. 

Jesus,  cf.  Pattern,  xxxviii  f.,  8, 
27,  141,  149,  159,  167,  171, 
178,  250,  259,  265,  273,  376. 

Jews,  25,  37,  85,  127,  129, 
138  ff.,  226,  230  f.,  367  f. 

Hatred  of,  293. 

Taxation  of,  131. 


John,  173,  176,  218  ff:,  233,  240, 
261. 

Acts     of,     252,    267,    273, 

398. 

Apocalypse  of,  xxxi,  225  fF. 

Eps.  of,  xxxi,  218  fF.,  229  f. 

Gospel  of,  231  fF. 

School  of,  218. 

Writings  of,  193,  253. 

Joyousness,   90,    177,    197,  207, 

316  f.,  359. 
Judaism,  xxxiii,  75  ff.,  85,  104, 

107  f.,    113    f.,    128    f.,    136, 

160-167,     172,     183    f.,     198, 

246,  275,  288. 
Jude,  Ep.  of,  224,  253,  269- 
"Judge  not,"  156. 
Judge,  Unjust,  138,  170. 
Judgment,     The     Divine,     46, 

387  fF. 

Knowledge,  176,  199,  211,  321, 
346. 

Labour,  Moral  value  of,  93,  170, 
299,  304. 

Distaste  for,  93,  130. 

Laodicea,  103,  IO6,  226. 

Law,  9, 107-112,  125,  139, 141  f., 
156,  161  f.,  169,  183  f.,  198, 
246,  278  f. 

of  Christ,  xxxviii,  110,  155, 

184,  279. 

Evasion  of,  139. 

Jesus'  exposition   of,   142, 


155. 


Roman,  1 1 8  f. 


Lawsuits,  25,   29  fF.,  56    f.,    65, 

131,  217. 
Leaders,  xxviii,  88,  201. 
Legalism,  Pharisaic,  149  f- 
Letter,  Intercourse  by,  xxix,  13, 

84,  102,  121  f.,  204,  326. 
Letters  of  recommendation,  117, 

242,  299. 
to  the  Churches,  xxxi,  220, 

225  fF. 
Liberality,  301,  322,  347,  350  L 
28 


434 


GENERAL   INDEX 


Libertinism,  37,  64  ff.,  73,  "6, 
227,  268  ff.,  338. 

Liberty.     See  Freedom. 

Liturgical  functions,  282 ;  cf. 
Divine  Service  and  Cere- 
monial. 

Long-suffering,  188,  321. 

Love,  28,  115,  132  f.,  140  fF., 
177,  204  f.,  210,  226,  229, 
245,  250,  279,  301,  357,  368. 

of  husband  and  wife,  1 83. 

• of  children,  183,  233,  300. 

Works  of,    257,  307,  346. 

See  also  Works  of  Charity. 

Lovelessness,  67,  79,  139- 
Lucian,  298,  371. 
Luke,  142  ff.,  151,  155,  264. 
Lukewarmness,  132,  197. 
Luxmy,  183,  346,  355,  365. 
Lying,  138,  146,   187,  234,  307, 
321,  346. 

Maccabees,  139. 

Macedonia,  59,  81-97,  136,  373. 

Magic,  18  f.,  66,  100,  367. 

Magicians,  257. 

Magistracy,  130,    182,   210,   240, 

292,  370  f 
Magnesia,  236,  246. 
Malice,  178. 
Mantic,  1 8  f.,  333,  344. 
Marital    relations.    Renunciation 

of,  40  f 
Mark,  Gospel  of,  195. 
Marriage,  69,  114,  183,  203,239, 

349. 

Indissoluble,    32,    41,    305, 

350,  376. 

ordained  by  God,  41,  304. 

Rejection    of,    40,    26l    ff.. 


352. 

a  Second,  40,  285,  305. 


Marriages,  Mixed,  30  f.,  69,  I6I, 

181,  335. 
Martyrs,   Worship  of,    236,   241, 

323,  328  f. 
Martyr-fanaticism,  256. 
Martyrdom,  149,   154,  156,   168, 


171,  190,  201,   210,   226,   233, 

235  f ,  256,  292,  328. 
Matthew,  Gospel  of,  155,  157. 
Matthias,  Traditions  of,  257. 
Meal,  144,  161,  328.     See  Lord's 

Supper. 
Mechanics,  303,  355. 
Meetings,  180,  197  f,  296,  333. 
Men-pleasing,  l65. 
Merchants,  303. 
Miracles,  257. 

Miracle,  Penal,  46  £,  146,  387  if. 
Missions,  32,   95,  124,  138,    l62, 

181,  226,  232,  274,  290  f 
Modesty,  210,  283,  300. 
yuova^tiv,  296. 
Monasticism,  93. 

Money,  Love  of,  I9I,   203,   243, 

283,  284  f.,  366. 
Monotheism,  66,   113,    197,  199, 

261,  331. 
Morality,  Ancient  preachers  of, 

135. 

Average,  175. 

Positive,  114,  181,  279  f. 

Twofold,  261,  279  ff. 

Motherhood,  233,  26l,  304. 
Murder,  180,  230,  234. 
Mysteries,  19. 
Myth,     Mythology,     251,     367, 

375. 

Name  of  Jesus  Christ,  15,  46,  55, 

180. 
Nature,  Deification  of,  270. 

Order  of,  38,  209- 

Natural   and   moral,   65,   259   i-, 

271  f. 
Nazarite,  154,  393. 
Neophytes,  345. 
Nero,  Persecution  under,  130. 
Neo-Platonism,  379- 
Neo- Pythagoreans,      126,      143, 

259,  396. 
Nicolaitans,  227,  264. 
Nominal  Christianity,  248. 
Novelty,  Desire  for,  209- 


GENERAL  INDEX 


435 


Oath,  308. 

Obedience,  108,  12i,  176  f.,  192, 

204,  207,  243,  247,  277,  373, 

to  rulers,  129,  210. 

Offering,  202.     See  Sacrifice. 
Offerings,  62,  19O,  297,  303. 
Office,    88,    148,    189  f^^^f-, 

281  f. 

Magisterial,  265. 

Officials,  Payment  of,  cf.  Office. 
Officiousness,  92. 

Oil,  Use  of,  153,  267. 
Opinion,  Public,  92. 
Opus  operatum,  320. 
Order,  22,  189,  205,  281,  353. 
Ornaments,  183,  265. 
Orphic  societies,  2,  1  26,  259- 
Other-worldliness,  200,  204. 
Outside-World,     Judgment     of, 
92. 

Influence  of  Church  upon, 

96. 

Parables  of  Jesus,  138,  170. 

Trapov(Tia,  42,  91,  9^- 

Parties   in    the    Church,    71  ff., 

Ill,  136,  149  ff.,  211,  338  f. 
Passion,  Christ's,  184,  212. 
Passover,  183,  267. 
Pastoral     Epistles,    xxxvii,    253, 

261,  266,  278,  282,  295,  298. 
Patience,  226. 
Pattern,  Apostle  as,  292,  323. 

Clergy  as,  284  f. 

Elders  as,  192. 

God  as,  302,  322. 

-  Jesus  as,  8,  97,  115,  183, 
193,  209,  213,  232,  240,  243, 
247,  267,  293,  322,  373. 

Macedonian    Churches    as. 


90. 


Old     Testament    as,     183, 


207. 


Parents  as,  208. 

Paul,  XXXV  ff.,  1-137,  149  f-,  I60 
ff,  173  ff.,  205  ff.,  217  f,  244, 
259,  270,  278,  291,  350. 

Peace,  93,  188,  205,  210,  212. 


Peculium,  385. 
Penance,  128. 
Pergamum,  226,  382. 
Peripatetics,  126,  396. 
Persec^ion,    87,   129,   145,   177, 

189,   196   ff.,    203,    226,  233, 

256,  292,  325,  S28f. 
Peter,  145  ff.,   150,   157,   l62  ff., 

168,  174,  190,  218,  326,  393, 

398. 
1st  Ep.  of,   175,  181,  203, 

207. 

2nd  Ep.  of,  253. 

Apocalypse  of,  257. 

Preaching  of,  310. 


Petrine  party  in  Corinth,  72. 
Pharisaism,  111,  114, 139 ff.,  149, 

160,  210,  311,  319. 
Pharisees,  139  jf.,  145,  l67. 
Philadelphia,  226,  235,  240,  246. 
Philemon,  Ep.  to,  115-120,  386. 
Philippi,  XXX,  81-86,  93-98,  241, 

244. 
Philosophy,  xxviii,  135,  276. 
Phrygia,  40,  100,  102-107,  111- 

115,  136,  253,  373. 
Piety,  127,  147,  321. 
Pliny,  XXXV,  180,  185,  371. 
Plotinus,  255,  271. 
Pneumatics,  255. 
Politics,  130,  181,  309,  325. 
Polycarp  of  Smyrna,  xxxii,  224, 

239-250,  284. 

Ep.  of,  xxxii,  244. 

Poverty,  84,  91,  144,  210,  255. 

as  ideal,  264,  304. 

Practical  Christianity,  189,  200, 

207,  219,  230,  245,  301,  347, 
373. 
Prayer,   xxvii,    41,    132,    141    f., 
156,   177,  194,  202,  206,  212, 
230,  240,  287  f.,  317,  340. 

Hours  of,  141,  287. 

Lord's,  287. 

Meetings  for,  245,  342. 

Preaching,  xxxii,  239,   290,  294, 

343. 
Precedence,  Quarrels  about,  337. 


436 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Presbyters^  Presbytery,  157,  190, 
214  f.,  242,  285,  2l6,  335. 

Pride,  132,  138  f.,  209,  239, 
245,  249,  269,  280,  312. 

Priest,  282,  288,  394. 

Prisoners,  I96,  201,  204,  297, 
359. 

Procreation,  40,  127,  26 1. 

Professions,  Dishonourable,  239, 
249. 

Progress,  187,  229,  375. 

Progressive  Christianity,  223. 

Propaganda.  See  Heresy,  Juda- 
ism, Missions. 

Property,  56  f.,  267,  26I,  264. 

Private,  56  f.,  143. 

Prophets,    Old  Testament,   130, 

140,  159,  183,  238,  341. 

Christian,    I6    f.,    69,   158, 

192,  219  f.,  228,  242,  282,  295, 
309  f.,  314,  317,  333,  340, 
357  f. 

False,  275,  337,  344. 


Prophetesses,  227  f.,  264,  305. 
Proselytes,  2,   31,  36,   123,   147, 

161,  167,  331,  388. 
Proverb-literature,  149,  278,  344. 
Psalms,  114. 
Psychic,  255. 

Punishment,  Corporal,  118,  354. 
Purity  of  heart,  1 59,  206. 
Pythagoreans,  143. 

Rabbinical  theories,  31,  49,  I69. 
Rabbinism,  Chi-istian,  153,  I6I. 
Rationalism,  66,  89. 
Rechabites,  154. 
Recompense,  Future,  196,  199- 
Reconciliation,  Need  for,  198. 
Relics,  Worship  of,  241. 
Renunciation,  241. 

of  rights,  57,  347. 

of  revenge,  xxv,   90,    133, 

188,  240. 
Repentance,  48,  197,  208,  244. 
Preaching    of,   xxviii,    306, 

309,  321,  328. 
a  Second,  330,  341. 


Responsibility,  257,  289- 
Resurrection,    53,    66,    89,    258, 

305. 
Revelations,    238,    242,   309    ff., 

339,  343. 

of  hell,  257. 

Rich,  The,  210,  324,  356  f.,  359. 
Riches,  303,  334,  347. 
Righteousness,  l64  f.,  194,  207, 

230,  301,  346. 
Romans,  Ep.  to  the,  2,  5,  121  f., 

182,  202. 
Rome,  xxxi,  83,  93, 112, 121-133, 

129  ff.,  163,  166,  182, 195-210, 

235,  238,  241,   264,  266,  277, 

309,  323  f.,  381  f. 

Sabbath,     128,    141,    149,    156, 

161,  230. 
Sacraments,  19  f,  341  f. 
Sacrifice,     140,     156,    198,    230, 

288. 
Sacrilege,      Christians     charged 

with,  102. 
Sadducees,  139. 
Saints,  67,  137,    146,    187,  200, 

230,  361. 
Salary,  285,  297. 

Salvation,  Certainty  of,  1 94,  1 99- 

Economy  of,  175. 

Samaria,  150,  231. 
Samaritan  woman,  233. 
Sanctification,     137,     166,     209, 

231,  372. 

Satan,  46,  l64.      See  Devil. 
Sayings  of  the    Lord,   41,    155, 

172,  185,  213,   248,   252,   279, 

308,  313,  373. 
Schisms, 

Scribes,  139,  l67. 
Scripture,  Authority  of,  183. 

Falsifying  of,  267. 

Knowledge  of,  279- 

Reading  of,  230. 

Sect,  127,  167,  275. 
Secularisation,  96,  98,  204,  229, 

291,    303,    306,    333  f.,    355, 
361,  376. 


GENERAL   INDEX 


437 


Self-denial,  205. 
Self-mutilation,  263. 
Sensuality,  114,  271,  321,  334. 


Speculation,  177,  225,  229,  251, 

277,  308. 
Speech,  Freedom  of,  15,  38,  281. 


Sermon,     207,     301.       See    also      Spiritualism,  251  f,,  258. 


Preaching. 
—  on  the  Mount,  xxxiv,  133, 


347. 
Servants,  Men-  and  maid-,   144. 

Cf.  slaves. 
Service,  Divine,  16  f.,  202,  W6, 

230,  245,  ^286,  339  f. 

Personal,      83,'    94,     117, 

386  f. 

on  behalf  of  the  Church, 

192,  215,  247,  301. 

on  behalf  of  the  state  in 


Athens,  57. 
Seven,  The,  147. 
Shamelessness,  260,  272,  366. 
Sick,     Visitation    of,    201,    257, 

286,  297,  349. 
Sickness,  Cases  of,  62. 
Simphcity,  206,  257,  321,  346. 
Sincerity,  xxxviii,  107. 
Sinlessness,  223. 
Sinners,  Saviour  of,  xxxix. 
Sin,     Confession     of,    229,    289, 

310-318,  343. 
Consciousness     of,    xxviii, 

170,  208,  229,  288,  312,  360. 

Deadly,  229- 

Forgiveness    of,   208,  312, 


307. 
Sister     ( =  Christian),     39,     3 1 5, 

352  f. 
Slaves,  11,  33  /".,  66,  105,   114, 

115-120,  144,   185,   204,   239, 

249,    299,    306,    324,    353  f, 

365  f,  368,  383  ff. 
Emancipation  of,  35,    118, 

354,  385. 
Smyrna,  226,  235,  240. 
Sobriety,  92,  177,  244,  284. 
Social  conditions,   12,   62,  90  f., 

187,  368  f. 

intercourse,  24  f. 

Souls,    Transmigration    of,    127, 

390. 


State,  131,  292,  325,  364  f      Cf. 

Magistracy. 
Statistics,     Ancient,     xxxiii    f., 

381  ff. 
Stoics,  7,  33,  53,    119,   126,   258, 

379. 
Strangled,  Things,  152. 
Suffering,  87,  96,  IO6,  145,   189, 

197  /:,  203,  226,  320. 
Suicide,  367,  370. 
Sunday,    I6,    58,   60,    180,    230, 

288. 
Superstition,  101,  180,  367. 
Supper,  Lord's,  22  f.,  60  ff.,  217, 

255,  263,  269,  288  f ,  339. 
Sustenance,  266  f. 
Synagogue,    1,  26,   64,   75,   129, 

131,  163,  185,   231,   294,   332, 

372. 

Adherents  of,  131. 

Tacitus,  xxxv,  130,  179  f-,  ^67. 
Talmud,  155,  I69  ff.,  170. 
Taxes,  130. 

Teachers,    IO6,    110,    201,    254, 
283  £ 

Itinerant,  282  f ,  297,  357. 

Temple,  149,  185. 

tax,  131,  156. 

Testament,  Old,   108,    112,   172, 

189,  157,  172,  183  f.,  198,  205, 

213,  227,  246,   253,   26 1,   293, 

310,  373. 
Thanksgiving,  187,  288. 
Theatre,  36,  249. 
Theft,  138,   180,   186,  257,  272, 

306,  347. 
Theosophy,  112. 
Therai)euta3,  118,  127,  397. 
Thessalonica,  xxx,  2,  81-93,  98, 

130,  136. 
Thomas,  Acts  of,  252,  272  f ,  398. 
Thought,  Sins  of,  313,  370. 
Tongue,  Sins  of  the,  307,  352. 


438 


GENERAL   INDEX 


Trial  of  Christians,  181. 

Truth,     187,      194.     232,      244, 

273  f.,  313,  321,  346,  370. 

(Johannine),  230. 

Twelve,  The,  11^1  ff.,  145,   148, 

153. 
"Two  Ways,"  The,  140. 

Unbelief,  197,  232,  321. 
Unchastity,    xxvii,    3,    12,    132, 

187,  209,  248,  259,  367. 

Unnatural,  54,  179,  257. 

Unity,   Sense  of,   97,    188,    205, 

208,  216,  321,  323,  342,  346. 
Universalism,  291. 
Usages,  Purificatory,  1  5^. 
Usurer,  54. 

Vanity,  236,  283,  311. 

Vegetarianism,  69,  126- 129, 
137,  153,  266  f,  396  ff. 

Veiling,  37. 

Vice,  Unnatural,  48,  54,  257, 
367. 

Vices,  List  of,  2,  110,  209- 

Virginity,  228,  26 1. 

Visions,  l63.  See  also  Revela- 
tions. 

Voluntariness,  190,  205,  296. 

War,  249. 

Washing  of  feet,  193,  232,  300. 
Watchfulness,  92,  177. 
"  Weak  "  and  "strong,"  28,  6^ff., 
129,  210,  254. 


Wealth.     See  Riches. 

Widows,  42,  239. 

and  orphans,  xxvi,  262,  284, 

327,    336,    341,    345    f,    353, 

358. 
of  the  Church,  244,  297  f , 


305. 
Wine,    Abstinence    from,     112, 

126,  137,  153,  266,  304,  396. 
Wisdom,  Old  Testament  teachers 

of,  159,  278,  344 
Witness,    False,    xxv,   244,    249, 

346." 
Women    in    the    ancient    world, 

36,  367. 
in    the    Christian    Church, 

xxv,  xxx,  36  f.,  144,  158,  183, 

212,  217,  263  f ,  283,  305,  352. 
in  common.  Having  of,  53, 


271. 

Works,  Good,  177,  226. 
Superfluity    of  good,    311, 

321. 
World,  Renunciation  of  the,  114, 

191  f 

The  outside,  92. 

Worldliness,  96,  98.  See  Secu- 
larisation. 

Worship,  112.  See  Divine 
Service. 

Old  Testament,  149. 

Pagan,  367. 

Young  men  (Deacons),  192. 
and  young  women,  286. 


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